Am I in FEAR or am I in FAITH?

Am I in FEAR or am I in FAITH?

     Often times when I find myself anxious, nervous, negative, and just downright irritable, I learn by looking introspectively (a big word to me for self inventory) that I am in fear. Fear has a grip on me and is not only clouding my judgment, its affecting my behaviors, attitudes and actions.

     I have learned, and am still learning for that matter, (because Kai is now 12 and growing up faster than I want her too!), that when I find myself in fear, I am without faith. I force myself to move toward faith to remove the fear that is paralyzing my thoughts, attitudes, and actions.

     I move myself back into faith and away from fear when I realize and accept that nothing happens in God’s world by mistake. I give the person, place, situation, or thing that is causing my fear back to God. I ask him to take it from me and help me to focus on something or someone that I can help.  If I stay focused on my motives and my efforts, my fear subsides and my faith grows. Next thing I know is that I am back to being me and available mentally, spiritually, and physically for those who need and depend on me!

Harry Emerson Fosdick contrasted fear and faith like this:

   "Fear imprisons, faith liberates; fear paralyzes, faith empowers;

   fear disheartens, faith encourages; fear sickens, faith heals;

   fear makes useless, faith makes serviceable and, most of all,

   fear puts hopelessness at the heart of life, while faith rejoices

   in its God."

Matthew 6: 25 -30…

25 "Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? 26 Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27 Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life? 28 "And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. 29 Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 30 If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?

AA Big Book pages 86 & 87

As we go through the day we pause, when agitated or doubtful, and ask for the right thought or action. We constantly remind ourselves we are no longer running the show, humbly saying to ourselves many times each day “Thy will be done.” We are then in much less danger of excitement, fear, anger, worry, self-pity, or foolish decisions. We become much more efficient. We do not tire so easily, for we are not burning up energy foolishly as we did when we were trying to arrange life to suit ourselves.

It works - it really does.