iQuit: Living in fear

Today is November 3. That means that there are less than two months left this year. In fact, there are 58 days left in this entire decade. So, this is the perfect opportunity to take stock of where our lives are going and if we need to make some changes to live a better life. One change that should be on all of our 2020 goals is to quit some bad and unhealthy habits.

This is why we’re closing out this year by talking about some behaviours that iQUIT and I invite you to join me. We will QUIT living from pay cheque to pay cheque, making excuses and complaining so that when we enter the next decade of our lives, we can live in the victory God called us to experience!

Before we get to these, we had to start off with the most destructive, stifling habit of all – FEAR.

Fear is destroying many of our lives and yet we have got so comfortable with it that we seem to forget that there is freedom available to us. In fact, the members of a psychology class asked 500 people, “What are you afraid of?” Those people listed 7,000 fears!

Research shows that seven of life’s most common fears are the fear of loss, failure, rejection, the unknown, things going too well, change and old age. Can you identify with any of these? There may have been a moment in your life when you experienced one or all of these fears at different times. John 16:33 says, “ …. In this world you will have trouble …” When we live in a broken world where trouble is promised, if we fear all these things, we will spend our lives paralysed, traumatised and unable to enjoy all the good things that God has promised.

But it need not be that way, for Christ came to deliver us from our fears. The rest of that same verse in John says, “ … but take heart! I have overcome the world.” Jesus promises that we can be of good cheer even in a world of trouble, because we have the victory in Him.

Scientists discovered that there are only two fears that we are all born with: falling and loud noises. But when we grow, we accumulate all sorts of different learnt fears. Whatever else you are afraid of, you have learnt that fear. The good news is this: if you’ve learnt to be afraid, you can also unlearn it.

2 Timothy 1:7 NKJV says, “ For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.” Fear is not from God, fear is from our spiritual enemy. It attacks our well-being and destroys our peace of mind. Yet, God our Father, the all-knowing, ever-present, all-powerful God has not given us fear!

Fear as a basic human emotion is not wrong, per se. God created us with the ability to regard certain dangers with protective fear. This is for man’s preservation and safety. When a barking dog jumps at you, the feeling of fear you get is natural and good. It will cause to you do whatever is necessary to avoid harm from the dog.

FEAR IS A GOOD SERVANT BUT IT MAKES A BAD MASTER.

We have allowed fear to take over – no longer as the tool to keep us from harm, but as a tyrant to keep us from joy. So next week, we will look at practical tools to ensure that you and iQuit Living in Fear!