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I ended my first post titled “Just Start” stating that fear was what held me back from starting the assignment that God had given me. I felt burdened to share my life experiences for the purpose of inspiring others and helping them step into their greatness and God’s will for their lives. So what was I so afraid of? Failing!
The enemy can put a lot of negative thoughts in our head about ourselves or our situation to hinder us from totally submitting to God. And if we are honest with ourselves, half the time we can’t even blame the devil, because we often get in our own way just as much as the devil tries to. The human mind is extremely powerful. What we allow in our minds can directly influence the way we behave, what we believe, and ultimately what we become.
“For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he": . . . - Proverbs 23:7
I have always been fascinated by the human mind and human behavior. Naturally, I chose psychology as a major in undergrad to study human behavior and mental processes. I remember learning about the human brain, its different parts and their functions, and how activity in the human brain is connected to our mental or cognitive processes (what goes on in our mind, whether consciously or unconsciously) and our behavior.
With that information, we can see how what we allow to enter our minds has a great impact on what comes out of us. This is exactly what was happening within myself that was holding me back. I was putting fear in, and the result was disobedience and lack of action toward God’s directive to me. I was allowing fearful thoughts to creep in, and had I not began to become consciously aware of them early enough to stop them in their tracks, they could have prevented me from moving forward in this journey. My thoughts sounded something like this... “Who do you think you are?, No one wants to hear what you have to say, Nobody cares, What if people don’t like what you have to say, What if what I have to say doesn’t help anyone” and on and on until I would feel discouraged and defeated. In one moment, I would be so excited about starting something new, and the next I would be overwhelmed with thoughts of everything that could go wrong. And thinking of what can go wrong before even starting something is a sure way to talk yourself out it and for it to never actually happen. Proper planning and rationally assessing possible obstacles is one thing, but completely defeating yourself before even putting yourself out there is a completely different. I was doing the latter...totally defeating myself before starting.
After waking up at 3:59 am that Saturday morning of September 8, I picked up my phone and checked my daily verse on my Bible app. The verse was Isaiah 26:4
“Trust ye in the Lord for ever: for in the Lord Jehovah is everlasting strength:” - Isaiah 26:4
The Lord was speaking to me through this verse, and the verse provided the exact answer to the problem I was having. I was letting all these fearful thoughts creep in and thinking that there was no possible way I could do what God was asking me to do the way I am. I’m shy, introverted, and don’t particularly enjoy being seen or recognized. I’d rather hide away in the comfort of seclusion. But that is not what the Lord has called his people to do. We cannot call ourselves followers of Christ if we hide or dim our light, preventing it from shining so that others can see Christ in us. Fear of failure was the reason I had put off for so long what I believed God was calling me to do. But the thing is, I was completely depending on my own strength and ability. With that mindset, I was sure to fail. It wasn’t until I came to the realization that I can’t do it on my own, but what I can do is completely trust in him, totally believing that he knows what he’s doing and what’s best for me and lean on HIS strength to guide me through it. The verse doesn’t say trust in the Lord only when we’re sure about the next step or when we are totally confident about something. It says, Trust ye in the Lord FOR EVER . . . meaning always, consistently, and endlessly. There are no conditions that change this. Again, Trust ye in the Lord FOR EVER . . . no matter what the circumstance, regardless of what I’m afraid of, and in spite of my limitations. And the Lord Jehovah will be my everlasting strength, because I am human and I will fall short. So if he is my strength and he lives in me, then I automatically have all I need to succeed. Without Him I am nothing and can do nothing. In our flesh it is easy to focus on what doesn’t qualify us for the job or the calling of God, but when we put on the whole armor of God and are equipped with HIS strength and not our own, we will win and nothing can stop us.
“Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil." - Ephesians 6:11
When the verse says "the wiles of the devil", it means the tricks, methods, or strategies that the enemy uses to try to defeat us. And one method for sure that the enemy uses is implanting lies in our head. If he can fill our minds with enough negativity and false beliefs about ourselves to the point to where we start believing them, then he’s got us. But if you fight against the attacks of the devil with the Word of God, then no weapon that stands against you will be able to prosper - Isaiah 54:17. Implanting my mind with fear of failure and making me feel inadequate was how the enemy tried to attack me and prevent me from carrying this through. Fear is not of God!
For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind. - 2 Timothy 1:7
Again, fear is not of God! The spirit of fear is from the enemy, and that is what initially led to my disobedience. It was not until I fully put my trust in the Lord and leaned on his strength that I began to have the power to push through the discomfort of being more transparent and starting to do things out of my comfort zone.
So lay your burdens on the Lord, submit everything to Him, and trust Him. It's a humbling experience to be able to get yourself out of the way and just let God come in and work. The plans that he has for you are not to harm you. He loves you so much and desires to bless you, but he needs the space to do so. He will not force it, but rather wait until you choose to get out the way and stop believing the lies that the devil is feeding you.
So I challenge you with this...
Consider the ways in which God has been trying to stretch you.
Is he pushing you into a greater season in your life?
Is there something in your life that you need to submit to him to move toward His perfect will for you?
What has God been telling you to do that you may have been putting off or have already made the decision to not do?
What is holding you back from trusting Him and taking that step of faith to do what he has called you to do?
And if you haven't yet heard anything from God but desire to, I encourage you to spend time daily in prayer and studying his word. It is difficult to know what God wants from us when we don't know him.
Be encouraged! Until next time.
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