When FEAR rears it's ugly head...

I have been in a Sunday School class on overcoming fear in your life and I’m learning lots. Fear has controlled me for lots and lots of year. We all have some sort of fear in our lives that controls us. Did you ever wonder how fear becomes a part of our life?

Feel free to Download this FEAR printable Here

Did you know that behind every fear there is a lie that’s controlling you???

Yep, there is and this is how fear gets a hold on our life.

1. A crisis occurs in your life.

Suppose as a little girl you are told you are fat, you are teased and made fun of. You may act like on the outside it’s no big idea. BUT on the inside, you are believing the lie and feel you are worth nothing because you are chunky or even fat.

2. A lie takes root!

You BELIEVE the lie! You tell yourself there must be something wrong with you. You may at this point do everything possible to not be fat- purge, starve or exercise in excess. OR you may just pulverize yourself with condemning self-talk and give up totally and withdraw from people.

3. Fear controls you.

This is how a stronghold takes place in your life.

Stronghold according to the dictionary is:

a place that has been fortified, to protect it against attack.
a place of security or survival
a place where a particular cause or belief is strongly defended or upheld

With a stronghold, we develop our own means of coping with life and defending ourselves.

It’s like the story of how they train elephants. When elephants are babies they are chained together at the ankles. At first, they try and break loose, but they can’t because the chains are so tight. They eventually quit trying. Later in their adult years, they are just held by a piece of rope that is staked to the ground. They could easily break free but they don’t even try!! That’s how we act when we believe lies year after year. We become enslaved to sin. We don’t have to live tied up if we know Jesus. He has already cut the ropes.

OK, I’m sure if you are like me you can identify one or two fears in your life. So what do we do with the lies??

1. When fear immobilizes you UPROOT the lie. What lie are you believing about yourself?

Remember FEAR is a symptom and the lie is the disease.

Spend some time asking God where there are lies that are rooted in your life. He will show you. He’s faithful like that.

Repent of believing those lies.

2. Plant the truth of God’s word in your life.

We will NOT be able to grow and change the lies we believe without first getting into God’s word and replacing the lies with the truth. This is crucial!

3. Let God’s word take root in your life.

Find and have battle plan verses ready to replace the lie.

For example, if you are worried about finances. Your lie might be God can’t meet my needs or He won’t or I haven’t been good enough for Him to meet my needs. That’s the lie. What does God say He will do? “And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus.” Phil. 4:19

or this verse:

be satisfied with your present [circumstances and with what you have]; for He [God] ^[b]Himself has said, I will not in any way fail you nor ^[c]give you up nor leave you without support. [I will] not, ^[d][I will] not, [I will] not in any degree leave you helpless nor forsake nor ^[e]let [you] down (^[f]relax My hold on you)! [^[g]Assuredly not!]So we take comfort and are encouraged and confidently and boldly say, The Lord is my Helper; I will not be seized with alarm [I will not fear or dread or be terrified]. What can man do to me? Heb. 13:5-6

These are battle verses! They replace the lie that God won’t be there for me with the truth that He is always there. Remember too, FEELINGS are NOT facts. Don’t buy into the lie that if you don’t{feel}it it’s not the truth.

Another way for the word of God to take root is to talk to yourself instead of listening to yourself. Watch carefully what you are saying to yourself. It might be necessary to take something you are saying and write it down. Once written down look at the lie and then replace it with the truth. Writing it down takes extra time but it sure is effective. Speaking it out loud retrains our brain.

source

I LOVE the above saying. It is so true. I have lived both ways. I have run as fast as I can away from the issue. I have news for you, the issues are still there when you come back and you still have to deal with it. Face your fears! God is there to help you.

Fear is only a mirage! Don’t buy into the lie.

I’m going to share with you next week a way to create a detailed battle plan to fight that fear!

Facing your fears and growing through them

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