Fear!

So many times we have fear. Fear of the unknown, fear of failure, fear of being chased around a table by timber wolves dressed as circus clowns and all your wearing are socks and you're on a linoleum floor...okay, that's not my fear but I think it's a Far Side cartoon.

Fear can hold us back. Fear can make it possible for us not to take that step forward, not to try something, not to push ourselves a bit harder. I know for me, in weight lifting, I have a fear of hurting myself. It's a good solid fear, but I let it take too much out of me sometimes. I don't push as hard because I'm worried "what if." You know, what if I strain myself and my body's wrecked forever? What if I drop this weight on my foot and I have to lose a tow?

For me personally, fear has held me back in working out. Sometimes it's a good thing. It's not the smartest idea to try to bench press your body weight when 1)you weigh over 300lbs and b) you don't have a spotter around. That's a good fear. But at times, there's fear of not trying. Fear of not even trying a new exercise because of the what if.

don't let the what if take over. Instead, take it over yourself.

I think in many ways we're spiritually like that as well. We let our fear take over us and we're not willing to grow, we're not willing to live and we stay where we're at not moving forward at all.

I like this verse

For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind. 2 Timothy 1:7 NKJV

So, my question is this. Will you stay with the fear, or will you allow God to work in you to let you have this spirit of power over your life, a power to love yourself and others, this power of a sound mind, a power of self discipline.

Are you willing to step forward into the unknown or are you going to stay where you're at and not let yourself grow?