The Voice of Fear

NOTE: Most of the blog posts that I linked to in this article are no longer working, but the quotes and other thoughts I wrote about still make this article worth reading.

Have you ever wanted to do something so desperately that your entire body trembled and your heart thumped? Maybe you want to run a 10k or write a book or homeschool your kids… but a million things hold you back. Actually, scratch that.

Only one thing holds you back: fear.

Fear can make you think you’re too busy, too out of shape, not smart enough, not organized enough, and not funny enough to succeed. Fear gives you a million excuses. But fear is a liar.

Jon Acuff has great posts about fear.

I highly recommend Jon Acuff’s blog (as well as his book Quitter!), and I’m going to share a few of his articles that are helping me find the courage I need in order to overcome my fear and let my voice be heard.

Here’s what Mr. Acuff says in regards to my fear of haters: “If you’re going to dream, you’re going to bump into some hate. Don’t quit just because you do.” Read the full article here.

This is what Jon says about my fear of being stuck in the same writing place forever: “One of fear’s favorite things to tell you, is that today is forever… But, fear is a liar. Right now, isn’t forever. Right now is just right now.” Read that full article here.

Jon shares his opinion that relates to my temptation to play it safe with sharing my thoughts: “Social media is either a megaphone or a mask….One way leads to freedom. One way leads to a facade. Choose wisely.” The full article is here.

One of Jon’s articles has rung in my mind longer and louder than the others. He said that, “Fear only gets loud when you do things that matter. And it always tries to appear larger than it really is.” I admire how he not only faced his fears, but also took photos of those fears and posted them online for everyone to see.  Go here to read the rest of that article.

We can overcome fear.

In order to live up to our potential, fear is something we are going to have to push through.

If you’re afraid, tell someone who’s braver than you. Voicing your fears will make them feel smaller, and it’ll help you realize that you do not need to let fear have power over you.

“For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.” 2 Timothy 1:7

I’d love to hear: What are you afraid of? What will you do to push through your fear?