Facing Our Fears

“I’ve never done this before,” I told the young man. He said, “My mom’s in her 60’s and she does it all the time!” That was only partly reassuring, because – even though I’m also over 60 - I was facing a totally new and rather scary experience. The young man hooked me into the harness, encouraged me to take my time, and just see what I could do. 

I took a deep breath and looked for the green hand-grips, which were the largest and easy to grab. 

I just focused on what was before me, one step higher at time, and refused to look down. When my arms grew tired, I leaned back momentarily to rest and kept my grip. And then, all of a sudden, I was there. I had reached the top. So I pushed off the wall, and the auto-belay lowered me down.

I was full of a great sense of exultation and accomplishment. I had done it! I had climbed a vertical wall!

Now I realize that for some people hitching themselves to a rope and climbing an indoor wall would be no big deal. For me, though, it was a big deal. Why? Because I’m afraid of heights, and fear so easily can paralyze me. 

Over the past few years, I’ve increasingly realized how often fear can catch me in its grip. New challenges often a real obstacle, so I’ve been trying to be more intentional about facing my fears, and trusting God to take care of me. For example, I have now driven up to the Seattle area (a 5-hour drive) by myself several times. What’s so hard about that? Well, for one thing, I’m afraid of the car breaking down while I’m on the road alone. But I have pushed through that fear.

And now I’ve started to tackle my fear of heights. So why rock climbing? In the past few months both of my grandsons have taken a rock climbing class. As I watched them I thought maybe – just maybe – I could try it. Realizing my fears over such an enterprise – along with the reality of no danger – made it seem like the perfect opportunity to challenge myself. 

And what did I find? Something similar to my drives to Seattle: my fears were greater than the actual circumstance! I went up almost to the top and quickly – before I had time to argue with myself – pushed away from the wall and started to belay down. Before I knew it, I was standing on my two feet on terra firma!

So what does this have to do with moving forward in the life of faith? I believe God offers us freedom to experience many things in life - mentally, physically, socially and spiritually – but fears may hold up back. They may act like a leash that keeps us tightly bound, and prevents us from exploring new territory. 

Anytime fear is involved, it’s important to evaluate whether there is real danger and – if so – how to handle it. We need to discern: am I afraid because there is risk, or am I simply afraid of the unknown? Am I feeling fear because this activity/experience is new, different, or simply uncomfortable? If that’s the case, then challenging ourselves to new things – facing our fears – can help us expand our world and give us a sense of accomplishment. 

So, for example, if we experience fears mentally, perhaps we should expose ourselves to new avenues of study or to new ideas. Facing physical fears might mean exploring new terrain; social fears might mean interacting with a new group of people or attending a different type of event. Spiritually, facing our fears might mean practicing new spiritual disciplines or extending ourselves in different ways to serve others. 

We can do this, because the Apostle Paul tells us God does not give us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love and self-discipline (2 Timothy 1:7). This is an invitation from God to release our anxiety and fear, and walk with him in joy and peace in every aspect of life. He can help us step into unfamiliar territory – as I did with rock climbing. By facing our fears, we may find a new hobby, a new challenge, or a new friend. In this way, we can develop more courage and more of a willingness to be open to other opportunities God might have for us. 

So, if you’re aware of some fear you have, I encourage you to talk to God about it and trust him to help you face it. And he will!

Let me pray for you.

Dear Lord, thank you for being present with us every minute through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. I pray that those reading this blog would bring their fears to you – in whatever area they struggle with. Help them to know they can trust you to give them courage as they face those fears. May your spirit of peace envelop them as they try new things and engage with new ideas. Thank you for loving them and guiding them as they walk into all this day holds. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.