Refuse to Live in Fear
(Never Give Up: Relentless Determination to Overcome Life’s Challenges, by Joyce Meyer)
I was really blessed in my quiet time with God this past week when I was reading this book. It was exactly what I needed to hear. I hope it blesses you too. All excerpts were taken from Chapter 3, Refuse to Live in Fear.
“God knows that when He calls us to do something that will take us to a new level, the first emotion that typically hits us is fear. Whether it’s low-level nervousness or full-blown panic, most of us experience some degree of fear when we think of doing something new. Our minds are filled with excitement, yet we think, What if this? What if that? What if? What if? What if?”
“Any time we step out to do something new, especially something new for God, we will almost always — and almost immediately — face a negative circumstance that will try to discourage us or convince us we cannot do what God asks of us. Something will come up to tell us it is too hard; it does not make sense; it will not work; or we are not qualified to do it. The enemy uses such words and thoughts to discourage us, hoping fervently we will never accomplish what we set out to do.”
“God not only sees where you are, He sees where you CAN BE. He not only sees what you have done, He sees what you WILL DO with His help.”
“The spirit of fear will always try to keep us from going forward.”
“Some things may seem too great for us, but nothing is impossible with God. He is not surprised for frightened by anything. If we are going to do anything great for God and if we are determined never to give up on our dreams, WE HAVE TO TAKE CHANCES…” [In other words, we have to DO IT AFRAID!]
“If God removed all fear, we would never grow and overcome obstacles. He often permits difficulty in our lives because He is trying to reveal something that needs to be strengthened or changed in us.”
“Each of us must decide if we will reach down deep inside and find the courage to press past fear, mistakes, mistreatment at the hands of others, seeming injustices, and all the challenges life presents. This is not something anyone else can do for us; we must do it ourselves.”
“Fear will not go away. It is something we can’t get rid of, so we must learn to overcome it.”
Here’s one final thought I had…
We don’t need to know what God is going to do next — either with us or through us, but we do need to know and realize that He is trustworthy. We can count on Him to be there for us and help us.
