Have No Fear!
"Nothing is to be feared but fear itself. Nothing grievous but to yield to grief." -Francis Bacon Fear has a way of keeping us from taking opportunities that may lead to self improvement. Whether it's the fear of applying for that new job, or even the fear of inadvertently scaring off that special someone when you confess your feelings for them. It can even lead to hurting the relationships we already have, such as when we become paranoid. Yes, fear is an enemy, but it is an enemy that can and should be defeated.
What does fear do to us? It causes stress, can hurt our sleep patterns, and affects our ability to make sound judgments. In short, fear must be defeated, and cannot be allowed to rule in our hearts and minds if we are to take the necessary steps to better ourselves and our lives. How does one defeat the power of fear? In short, we must be willing to lay aside our ever changing emotions and seek truth and reason, despite any discomfort we may feel. This does not mean we have to plunge head first into the first opportunity that looks good to us, but we must lay aside fears, and truly weigh all the possibilities. Most things in life worth having require some risk to get them, we just have to be brave enough and wise enough to take the right risks. What is "bravery"? Contrary to what we might expect, bravery is not the absence of fear, but how we choose to deal with fear when we have it. The bravest and most courageous people in the world are not those who are without fear, but instead are the ones who refuse to let fear cloud their judgment, and are willing to face such fears head on. What will you do about it? We all have dreams and hopes for our lives, and there comes a time when we've just got to take a chance (sometimes many) and pursue those dreams. My dream is to be a writer, and that took a
lot of courage to attain. I had to put aside my fears of rejection, just start putting my writing out there, and every chance I have taken has been worth it. I hope you will find that same courage as well. Jay Sekulow is an American attorney and Chief Counsel for the American Center for Law and Justice (ACLJ)