A Ball of Fire

Yesterday I listened to Brian Johnson from Bethel church share a story from early in his marriage. Brian backed into a last minute trip to Brazil for missions work that he didn’t really want to go on. He didn’t want to go, but everything kept pointing him toward Brazil.

This place of indecision allowed he and his wife’s imagination to go wild. In a short order, they convinced themselves his plane would go down in ball of fire over the Caribbean Ocean. They were literally in tears. They were telling each other goodbye.

The story is outlandish, but it shows the power of fear. Fear had weaseled its way into their thinking. They were reduced to nothing.

As he told this story, he threw in a powerful short sentence.

It was hell.

Fear = Hell

Fear is hell. It binds you up. It stops you from moving forward in life. It clouds your thinking. Fear is hell.

Here’s another good quote from the Brian’s story.

Beside themselves with fear, they called a friend. The friend asked them a simple but pointed question,

Does God ever speak through fear?

How do I know fear = hell?

God has no part in fear. Sure there is the “fear of God,” but that is a respect issue. Worry, fear and anxiety are never from God. Fear disconnects us from God. Eternal disconnection from God is the definition of hell.

How do I know fear = hell? God has no part in fear. Share on X

Fear is no Friend of Mine

I deal with fear too. I’m wrapping up devotional book. I’ve sent it out to 15 friends for feedback. Then it’s open the whole world. I’m afraid. I’m afraid it won’t be good. I’m afraid I’ll receive disingenuous feedback. I’m afraid no one will read it. I’m afraid.

How do I know I’m afraid? Here are 3 signs:

1. Avoid.

Last weekend I downloaded a new game on my phone. It’s a stupid little bubble pop game. I couldn’t put it down.

You might say it’s just a phase. It will pass. Possibly, but I played when I knew I should be writing, editing, working. I’m used it to avoid the fear in front of me.

2. Fatigue.

The last few weeks, I’ve been really tired. I’m tired from working hard, but it’s more than workload. The fatigue is directly tied to drowning myself in a game, Netflix, the ESPN app, anything but reality.

It’s a mild depression. Depression caused by my fear.

3. Block.

Avoidance and fatigue take me out of my routine. When I don’t sleep well. When I don’t steadily intake healthy information (books, blogs, thought provoking articles, podcasts, etc), I am blocked. I have trouble writing, thinking, processing.

It started with fear.

Fighting through Fear.

Here is how to fight through fear. It’s how I’m getting out of that hell.

1. Reflect.

I mentioned how tired I was to Kia. I didn’t have an answer to why, so I took some time to reflect. It didn’t take long to determine why. I was avoiding my fear through all the ways listed above.

If you can’t seem to find your balance. If you can’t seem to rev your engine back up after rest. Ask yourself why. Take time to reflect on what your heart is trying to tell you.

2. Rest.

I hit a wall. I needed to slow down. So I did. I took time to recoup my energy.

Clear thinking defeats fear because it gives you a plan of action.

3. Rise.

To truly tackle fear, you must take a step. You have to rise up and do the next thing on your list.

Last night, I edited again. The night before I researched marketing and distribution. I took a step.

To defeat fear in your life, you need to rise up and do something.

Fear is hell. It’s not from God, so you don’t have to stay there. If you are struggling with fear take time right now to determine why. Schedule time to rest. Then rise up to take a step of action.