Got fear? We all do. Do you want to know how to fear less? Keep reading.

If fearfulness were not a mark of humanity, then why would God have said “Fear Not!” more than a hundred times in His Word (the Bible). This post and the ones that follow in this series (four posts in all) look at the question: How can a Christian woman fear less, even become fearless? Hear what women said about fear at my Facebook page. I encourage you to sign up for my blog so you won’t miss a single post in my FEAR LESS series. The signup box is at the upper right. Thanks.

If you and I had no problem with worry, then why Jesus’ field-flower words?

Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life? And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. (Matthew 6:27-29)

Why his sparrow song?

And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered.So don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows. (Matthew 10:30-31)

Why? We need a loving reminder.

Remember Him

You and I need the loving reminder that God is good and that He is in control. We need the loving reminder that TODAY is a blip on the eternity scale.

Yes, a loved one may be sick. Your finances may be in the toilet. Someone you thought you could trust may have betrayed you. All this hurts. It gives rise to fear.

As many do, you may grasp for protection from fear’s hellish aspects. You want to preserve what little comfort you have.

You want your life to matter. You don’t want to fear.

The other day my dad asked me to write our family history. He turned 77 years old in late August; arthritis has stiffened his knees and back, and the bathroom has become his oft-visited throne room, if you get my drift.

He wants the stories of old written down for the generations to come. His legacy. One of my great aunts began this history decades ago. It looks like it’s my turn to add and edit and, most important, comfort my dad as he nears his last days on earth. He feels it in his bones. This ending, this fear.

In our fear of things temporal, God points us to a greater reality: our eternal destiny.

Where’s Your Focus?

When you and I focus on the here and now, the thunder and the waves, the paycheck, the electricity bill, the feverish child, we take our eyes off Jesus and his power to free us from our fear.

Of course, if a doberman pincher is chasing you, run! Your adrenaline-pumping fear saves you buttocks and this is good. God designed your body to flee or to fight when you face danger. Your body has a physiological response: increased heart rate, increased sweating, increased dilation of pupils, to name a few.

However, these responses can also be learned when there is no real danger and thus unlearned and controlled. For instance, a counselee I’ll call Amy had a deep-seated fear of thunderstorms. In her childhood, while living in the deep South, two gargantuan storms produced hail the size of grapefruit and shredded her home’s roof. She felt unsafe and exposed.

Decades later, when she a whisper of a possible thunderstorm — though now she lived in a northern state and had witnessed only pea-sized hail, she experienced panic symptoms and tried to control her fear by continuously watching the Weather Channel, which interfered with life, even the basics of cooking dinner, doing laundry, and playing with her preschool children.

Eyes on Jesus

Eventually Amy (a born-again Christian) learned that freedom from anxiety requires total surrender of self. By this, I mean the decision to give yourself over to Christ regardless of the cost to one’s life ambition. Her ambition: safety and security. Was she willing to put her physical life in the hands of God, come what may?

As happens to so many of us — me included — anxiety sinks its claws in us when we trust in self, not God, and become more concerned with people’s opinions than God’s truth. Thank God He has an effective solution to the problem of anxiety. Next time we’ll look at it and revisit Amy’s thunder fear and how she now welcomes storms. Join us.

Note: If you take medication for anxiety or for another condition, consult your doctor BEFORE you discontinue its use or make any changes to dosage. Taking medication can curb the paralyzing effect of excessive fear in other to address heart-and-soul issues through biblical counseling and other means including dietary changes and exercise.

Next time: 4 steps to fear less.

Question: What is your favorite Bible verse that addresses fear? Please share. By sharing you encourage one another.

With Joy Overflowing!