Fear Nothing

You’re probably familiar with the famous quote “…the only thing we have to fear is fear itself.” Franklin Roosevelt spoke these words to a country that was being devastated by the greatest worldwide financial crisis in history: The Great Depression. It was a terrible time for not only America, but for most people in the world. FDR was taking a leadership role that seemed doomed from the beginning. Why would anyone want to take charge of a country during it’s worst economic condition ever? As he rose to speak the first words of his presidency, I’m certain everyone was already putting their hope in this man to change their world. These are the words he spoke as he began his inaugural address:

“I am certain that my fellow Americans expect that on my induction into the Presidency I will address them with a candor and a decision which the present situation of our people impel. This is preeminently the time to speak the truth, the whole truth, frankly and boldly. Nor need we shrink from honestly facing conditions in our country today. This great Nation will endure as it has endured, will revive and will prosper. So, first of all, let me assert my firm belief that the only thing we have to fear is fear itself—nameless, unreasoning, unjustified terror which paralyzes needed efforts to convert retreat into advance. In every dark hour of our national life a leadership of frankness and vigor has met with that understanding and support of the people themselves which is essential to victory. I am convinced that you will again give that support to leadership in these critical days.” [Source: Franklin D. Roosevelt, Inaugural Address, March 4, 1933]

Facing an unemployment rate of over 25%, over 5,000 failed banks, and innumerable families declaring bankruptcy, President Roosevelt says the only thing we need to fear is fear. Essentially, fear nothing, don’t be afraid. Everything that would make an ordinary person  tremble with fear was everywhere and the leader of the country says “don’t be afraid.” He told the country that fear was “nameless, unreasoning, unjustified terror.” If ever there was a time when fear was justified, it was during the Great Depression. But FDR didn’t see it that way. He decided to face it head on and conquer the fear “which paralyzes needed efforts to convert retreat into advance.” In other words, he wasn’t going to run away from this monster. He was facing it head on. And that changed everything.

2 Ti 1:7 For God did not give us a spirit of fear, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline.

FDR had a very biblical approach to fear. Given his circumstances, it should help us put things in perspective. Spiritually, fear is the most damaging weapon to our walk with God. Despite the fact that God has not given us a fearful spirit, somehow we continually allow ourselves to reside in fear and even accept that we should be afraid of some things. Preachers, ministers, elders, and leaders throughout Christianity make excuses for their fear instead of acknowledging it and overcoming. Those responsible for leading the church in the war against the enemy run away, paralyzed by their fear of the world–fear of homosexuality, fear of prostitutes, fear of pornography, fear of drug addicts, sex addicts, alcoholics, gangsters, punks, goths, or anyone who is remotely different than the stereotypical Christian man or woman. Instead of embracing the world and helping it heal, Christianity is separating itself from the world because of its fear. What would happen if we stopped being so afraid?

First think about your personal life. What are you afraid of? Surveys show that the majority of Americans are afraid of public speaking. Is that true for you? Are you afraid of heights or flying or tight spaces? Have you ever sat down and thought about why you’re afraid of these things? Take heights for example. If you were on the top of the Empire State Building, what immediate danger would you be in? Could you fall off? Is the building going to fall over? No. They have very tall metal fences going all around the observation deck preventing anyone from falling off or being thrown off or anything. You are just as safe on that observation deck looking down on New York as you are on the ground level looking up (maybe safer since they have you go through metal detectors as you enter the building). The only difference is fear. What about flying? Thousands of people are afraid of flying, yet they drive their cars everyday. Statistics show that 1 in 100 people die from car accidents and 1 in 20,000 die from plane crashes. It’s proven that flying is 200 times safer than driving, yet hardly anyone is afraid to get behind the wheel. How are you with trying new foods? Some people resort to excuses like, “I am a creature of habit. I always get the same thing.” Some people say, “I don’t want to risk ordering something new and not liking it.” Essentially, and this is true for me, people don’t try new food because they’re afraid of it. (I’ll discuss how I overcame my fear of new food in a minute.)

Physically, fear dictates what we eat, how we travel, how we are entertained, and many other things. Fear hinders our ability to experience everything life has to offer.

Spiritually, fear dictates what we believe, how we worship, how and if we evangelize, and how closely we adhere to Christ’s standards of morality.

“God has not given us a spirit of fear.” Once I realized this, everything changed for me both physically and spiritually. It started a few weeks ago when I was preparing a lesson for a job interview in Arkansas. I chose the topic of fear because of a conversation I had with my wife a few days earlier. We were walking through the neighborhood and saw a kid learning to do kick-flips with his skateboard. After watching him fail about thirty times, I said to my wife, “He’s not getting high enough because he’s afraid he’s going to fall down.” That led to a conversation about all the things in my childhood I never accomplished or tried because I was afraid. I tried to learn flatland freestyle bicycle tricks in middle school but was never any good because I was afraid of falling off my bike. I didn’t ride a real roller coaster until 8th grade. I didn’t ask a girl out on a date until 11th grade. I avoided a lot of social events because I was afraid of what people would think about me. Failure scared me to death. Thankfully I grew out of those things, but then I started thinking about spiritual fears. Why am I afraid to help someone in need? Why am I afraid of talking to someone about Jesus? What keeps me from accomplishing great things for the Kingdom? Fear.

“God has given us a spirit of power.” As I kept thinking about fear in preparation for my interview, I slowly realized how much of my life was dictated by my fear. I sat and thought to myself, “How am I going to overcome this?” I had been afraid for so long that I didn’t know what to do to overcome it. Then I went back to the verse. “Hey! God has not given me this fear,” I said to myself. “God has given me a Spirit of Power!” Neither you nor I are powerless in the face of our fear! God has given us a power that transcends this world in the form of his Spirit that dwells within us. We are not weak! We are powerful! As this realization hit me, I just sat in awe of God and marveled in this new awakening that I felt within my soul. I also found the answer I was looking for: “All I have to do is change my mind.” It sounds utterly simple and yet difficult at the same time. But if what God said is true, then it will work. So at that point I decided I was not going to be afraid anymore. I committed to myself and to God that I would let go of every fear within me and experience life as God wanted me to experience it.

A few days later my wife’s family came into town and we were having lunch together. The menu was fajitas. I love Mexican food and have eaten fajitas many times. However, my version of fajitas consisted of meat and cheese. As I got my plate, I asked myself why I didn’t eat the onions, peppers, and refried beans. Fear was the only reason I came up with; so I loaded my tortilla with onions, peppers, beans, rice, and even tried the guacamole. And you know what happened? I didn’t die. I actually liked it. Since then I have eaten many new foods that I had always avoided before, I have been more confident around strangers with my faith and have asked how I can pray for random strangers that I meet in public. It all came down to making a decision to not allow fear to dictate the way I live anymore.

“God has given us a spirit of love and self-discipline.” Already having experienced a life-changing amount of application from 2 Timothy 1:7, I didn’t think I could gain much more from the final six words. But with my new fearless approach to life, I decided I would see what kind of truths the end of the verse held for my life. What does it mean to have a spirit of love and self-discipline? Like many people, there are temptations in my life that are constantly reminding me of my depravity. While struggling with lust and porn may be the “typical” temptations for guys to have, I was fed up with it. I’ve listened to speakers and I’ve read the books and I’ve been told I will struggle with this temptation forever. (That stinks!) It’s almost like the Christian community expects every guy to struggle with porn. In fact, I had adopted a feeling of normalcy for struggling with this. However, something didn’t seem right. I decided I would combine my new outlook on fear with the spirit of power, love and self-discipline and see where it took me.

Being an analytical person, I wanted to understand why I continually struggle with wanting to look at porn and why, despite my constant prayers, these desires are not taken away from me. I asked God, “What are you showing me? What am I missing here about my sinful nature?” I knew I was on the brink of having another spiritual awakening, but I didn’t know how to get there. So I just waited. A few days passed and then something happened. I was getting ready for bed and talking to my wife about a close family member who is struggling with a sexual addiction. He had been sober for a month or so and then fell back into his sinful habits, re-destroying his fragile marriage and hurting his kids all over again. The conversation went like this:

“I know it’s an ‘addiction’ and all, but I don’t care how addicted you are. If he wanted to stop badly enough, he could stop. If he cared about his family, he could stop.” I said as I put some toothpaste on my toothbrush.

“Then why can’t you stop?” My wife said very pointedly as I put my toothbrush in my mouth.

My heart fell to the pit of my stomach. Following her comment was a very long silence as I thought to myself, “Wow, that is so true. If I wanted to stop giving in to porn badly enough, I would stop. God has given me a spirit of power, love, and self-discipline. The only reason I continue to struggle with this is because I want to.”

“You’re right,” I finally said to her with an immense feeling of self-awareness and guilt.

I didn’t say much the rest of the night. Coming to grips with my sinful nature was difficult. Only then did I truly realize that when I give in to those temptations, I am betraying both my wife and the Spirit of power, love, and self-discipline that God has put within me. God spoke very clearly into my life that night. He revealed to me what the spirit of love and self-discipline is. It means that I make choices everyday, every hour, and every minute to follow a spirit. I can follow my spirit of fear–fear of what my life might look like if I didn’t struggle with porn–or I can follow the spirit of power, love, and self-discipline and make the decision to stop giving in.

This doesn’t only apply to me. It applies to you too. Every temptation that presents itself to you comes with a choice. You can choose to give in to it or you can choose to overcome. When something happens that would make a normal person cuss or get angry, you have a choice. When you have to lie or get punished, you have a choice. Regardless of how much you want to give in or how badly your physical or chemical dependencies are telling  you to give in, you always have a choice. You can choose to satisfy the sinful nature and walk the path of fear, giving in because you’re afraid of what might happen if you don’t, or you can embrace the true Spirit that lives within you: The Spirit of God that comes with all of his power, all of his love, and all of his self-discipline. I have made a change in my life. I am not going to be governed by my fear. I am going to choose to stop giving in to porn. I am going to walk with Christ.

God forbid we allow fear to ruin our lives anymore! Take a stand against fear. Don’t let it dictate what you do or how you live anymore. You have the Spirit of Christ living in you if you are a follower of Christ. Don’t deny its power! Embrace it and allow it to change you into who God wants you to be. Don’t make excuses. Don’t be weak. Don’t justify your sin any longer. Don’t give in. Don’t give up. You can do this because the Spirit living in you is NOT a spirit of fear; it is a Spirit of Power! Yes and Amen!