“For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline” (2 Timothy 1:7).
Are you fearful or faithful? The answer to that question is the difference between whether you are putting your trust in God or the devil.
Fear is faith that the devil has more power than God, which is not true. I John 4:4 says, "Greater is He that is in me than he that is in the world."
For years, I had been plagued by fear. I was afraid to drive, afraid to be sick, afraid to die, afraid to talk to people, afraid to try anything new. Fear was my constant companion.
After being sick for four years, I developed a panic/anxiety disorder. I couldn't talk to people face-to-face or on the phone without being tongue-tied and going into a panic attack. Needless to say, I didn't go out much.
I went back to college because God was dealing with me about coming out of my comfort zone. College is a scary place for a person with a panic/anxiety disorder.
Then one night I was visiting a church, and a traveling evangelist came up to me and told me that God was going to bring me out of my solitude. My inward reaction was "Yeah, right!"
That semester every teacher I had put me in groups with other students. I can understand one or two, but I had five teachers that semester.
By the end of the semester, a change had occurred. So subtly I didn't notice. I gave two presentations in front of my small business class, told one of my testimonies on a local radio broadcast and talked in front of a church full of people.
To this day, I still get butterflies in my stomach when I talk on the phone or speak in front of people. My heart still pounds, and my hands still sweat, but God expects us to feel fear. The key is to do it afraid. Whenever you have to give a speech, fly or do something you are afraid to do, do it afraid. Don't let that feeling of fear terrorize you to the point where you must rearrange your life to accommodate it.
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