I stared at my newly bought car, and my pulse quickened. As I opened the door and got behind the wheel, I felt sweat forming on my brow. I hadn’t driven in over ten years, and I was facing a two-hour trip on winding country roads. I was terrified. How could I defeat this fear that was gaining control of me?
There was only one way forward: I had to attack my anxiety head-on. The longer I waited, the more difficult it would be. I held my breath as I forced myself to turn the ignition.
Fear is our God-given response to danger. And not without reason – without it, there would be no limit to our risky behavior. I was right to be apprehensive about driving after such a long break. My hand-foot-clutch coordination needed to get back into gear (no pun intended).
But God never intended fear to paralyze us, as it tends to do. No wonder the Bible repeatedly commands us not to be afraid. The Lord knew how much we needed to hear these words over and over again.
How can we do this? While doing an internet search of verses on fear, a pattern jumped out at me. Again and again, the reason given for not being afraid is linked to God himself: his presence, his protection, his love, his salvation, and so on. It became clear that the Lord’s command not to fear isn’t a reprimand of our emotions but an invitation to trust him. He calls us to listen to him rather than to what frightens us. He gives us reasons to trust him. We defeat fear by replacing it with faith.
I don’t mean to imply that we should never assess the risks and dangers of a situation and take precautions. God has given us our minds for a reason. But we should never let fear make our decisions for us.
Even when we trust God, the emotion of fear may never completely go away, but it can recede into the background. Every time we choose to trust God and take a step of faith, we drive a nail into the coffin reserved for fear. We’ll have victories and defeats, but God’s help is always close if we trust him.
As I headed out the door to go on that car trip, I grabbed a bunch of sermons to listen to on the way. I hadn’t even glanced at the titles. As I sat behind the wheel and proceeded to look them over, I had to smile. Every single one was about fear. God was trying to get my attention, don’t you think? As I took that first timid step of faith, God’s presence and strength were with me the whole way.