Fierce Faith: Fighting Fear & Overcoming Anxietyనమూనా

No Longer a Prisoner of Fear I’m not really a fighter. I’m a flee-er. It’s not my nature to turn and face a storm head on. I talk a big game, but truth be told, at the first sign of a strong wind, I’m running for the closet. I want to hide in a corner and wait until the storm passes. Fear was wrapped up in every moment of my day. And even though I often heard God’s Spirit say, “Perfect love casts out fear,” often my body replied, “But I’m still scared.” There was a battle in my mind between the spiritual (God’s truth) and the physical (my thoughts). And up until I decided to fight, my thoughts were winning. But there came a time in my life where it was time for this scared girl to learn how to fight. For a long time this battle between the spiritual and the physical made me question myself. Did I not have enough faith? Did I not love Jesus enough? What was wrong with me? Why, when the Bible was so clear that I was to be anxious for nothing, did I still worry? Paul teaches us, “For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other" (Galatians 5:17). In other words, we have a fight on our hands. It’s our fear versus our faith. Thankfully, we’re not without a battle plan in this fight. Paul also tells us how to overcome our fear with faith: “It is for freedom Christ has set us free, stand firm then and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery” (Galatians 5:1). And, “So I say, walk by the Spirit and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh” (Galatians 5:16). We are to stand in the freedom that Christ has given us through his resurrection and triumph over sin and death. Too often we choose to sit in prison cells of fear and anxiety even though we’ve been unchained and the door stands wide open. We need to stand up and by the power of the Spirit walk out of the prison doors. Our flesh may tell us that freedom from fear isn’t possible, but I’m here to tell you that through Jesus it is possible! As women of God, our battle is not against the things of this world, but powers and forces in the spiritual realm. The enemy is not going to stop fighting, and neither will we. We can fight confidently because we know the enemy is defeated, the war has already been won, and it’s our job to fight the battles with strength and confidence. Fear may freeze our faith. But when we fight, and oh, we will fight, our faith frees us from fear. Prayer: Lord, you know all of my anxious thoughts. You know that they overwhelm me, and I choose not to cower in fear. But I choose to stand and fight against them in your strength today. Help me walk by your Spirit and stand in your strength! I want to be free from fear! Amen. Action Step: Consider how you have dealt with fear and worry in the past. Is your natural inclination to fight, flee, or hide? What is one thing you can do today to change how you respond to fear?