Fighting Fear with Faith

It’s truly amazing how many things we can be afraid of. There’s the fear of sickness, job loss, failure or even the future itself—the list goes on! While some fears may seem more “trivial” than others, it’s important to know that fear does not come from God. In fact, God wants us to walk by faith, while Satan wants us to walk in fear.

There was a time in my life when I had more fears than I could count. Because I was abused as a child, I was afraid of making people angry. I often got caught up in being a “people pleaser.” I was afraid of stepping out into something new, fearful that others might not approve.

You see, at the time I didn’t understand how to fully trust God to handle my problems. But over time, God showed me exactly what fear was and how to combat it—through faith. Once I began to learn how to accept His love and grace, everything else started to fall into place.

It’s important to first understand exactly what faith is. The Bible says that faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see (Hebrews 11:1 NIV). It’s the hope in God’s promises to protect us, to grow us, and to love us. Simply put, faith is the opposite of fear. When we learn to live in faith and not let fear rule our lives, we can enjoy a fulfilling, peaceful and joyful life in Christ.

Choose Worship Over Worry

Worship is a spiritual weapon. But it’s one we have to choose to use when confronted by fearful thoughts. When we choose to worship God—focusing on His goodness and all of the good things He has done for us—we invite His power and presence into our lives.

Choosing to worship involves your thoughts and attitudes. When you’re tempted to keep worrying about the same things, make the decision instead to practice your faith.

Think and say things like:

“God, I believe you are working in my life. I trust You, and I’m expecting something good to happen today!” (See Philippians 1:6; Psalm 37:3; Isaiah 30:18.)

“Your Word says you are an ever-present help in a time of trouble. I know that You love me and that You’re working on my behalf right now.” (See Psalm 46:1; Romans 8:38-39.)

I’m not saying we should ignore our problems, wishing they’d just go away; it’s good for us to be honest about what is happening in our lives. But worrying and obsessing over them won’t help us!

When fear and anxiety attack, I challenge you to stop what you're doing, get quiet for a moment, and begin to worship God. As we seek Him, we are focusing on Him instead of our fears. After all, we worship Him for Who He is and for the good He has done, is doing, and will continue to do.

Release Your Faith Daily

Jesus says in Mark 11:22 (AMP), “Have faith in God [constantly]…whatever things you ask for in prayer [in accordance with God’s will], believe [with confident trust] that you have received them, and they will be given to you.”

I love how this verse tells us to have faith in God constantly. It doesn’t say have faith in God unless you have to wait a long time, or until you come across some unexpected problem. This verse doesn’t say to give up when the going gets tough. Instead, it tells us to always have faith.

2 Corinthians 5:7 (NIV) says something similar: For we live by faith, not by sight. We’re not called to occasionally choose to have faith. As Christians, we’re called to live by it.

I believe there’s a “law” in the universe called “use it or lose it.” For instance, if you don’t use a muscle, it becomes atrophied and weak, and you can no longer use it. The same applies to our faith. If we aren’t making the conscious decision to put our trust in God and His promises on a daily basis, then our faith will shrink—and we’ll leave the door wide open for fear to creep back into our lives. 

Faith has nothing to do with what we see or what we feel. Faith is something in our heart that says, “God is good. God keeps His word. And if God says He’ll do this, then I believe He’ll do it no matter what people say, how I feel, or how long it takes.”

Face Your Fears

So, I want to ask: What are you afraid of today? Is there a situation or circumstance that threatens to overwhelm you? Is something stealing your peace and causing you to worry? If so, I want to encourage you that God sees you, He loves you, and He wants you to trust Him. God has a good plan for your life. Press forward in faith and do it afraid!