by Kimberly Due-Vacco

Created on: September 03, 2009   Last Updated: September 12, 2009

The subject of fear and anxiety has come to my mind a lot lately, as I'm sure it has to many other Americans. With the economy the way it is and morality appearing to slip in the country, people tend to become more fearful and anxious about the future. We also have other fears-fear of intimacy, fear of failure and even fear of success-that seem to pervade the lives of many people. How can we use our faith in God to help us concentrate on hope instead of fear? I turn to a few passages of scripture to give me the insight I need in order to beat the fear demon forever more.

As Christians we are called upon to not be a slave to a spirit of fear (Romans 8:14-17). This is what fear does to us: It binds us and we become slaves to the fear. Mainly, we are so afraid of losing control of our emotions that we will not allow God to take control of them. Our death grip of control actually strips us of our desired prize because paralyzing fear ties up our emotions. That keeps us stuck in the muck.

In 1 John 4:16-18 we are taught that perfect love drives out fear. There is only one being whose love is perfect, and that is God. In our relationship with him, we are able to understand perfect love, grab on to it and finally drive out the fear that plagues us. When we open our hearts to the power of God's love, our anxiety will fall away. It all sounds really simple, but in practice, it is surprisingly difficult. Our egos get in the way when we try to set aside our intellect and defer to God's instead.

In order to move away from fear and into the unmarred love of God, we have to die to our own selves (Ephesians 4:21-24) so that we can live the victorious life that God has planned for his children. In order for that to happen, full reliance on God is paramount, which will not only calm, but also eradicate our fears forever. We have to put aside all our expectations and goals in favor of releasing our will fully to God, and in so doing, we know that what he creates for our lives is much bigger and better than anything we could envision or achieve on our own.

So, once we give up the idea that we have to be in control, the fear begins to fade. We are slowly able to shed each layer of fear that we have built up over a lifetime of disappointment and degradation. The love of God and fear cannot occupy the same space. We have to actively command the fear to leave and make a conscious effort to replace it with God's love. This means that we are required to act, to put on the "armor of God" in our efforts, not simply wait for a feeling of peace to wash over us. That armor, once we have it in place, equips us with the power of God. We have to turn our fear into an enemy that can only be crushed by the love of God through our mindful action and our commitment to his word.

Layer by layer we learn to replace the fear that once enslaved us and God's promises overtake all of our anxiety. We no longer rely on our own understanding of life, but instead we are reliant upon the sound mind of God to guide us. We are then enrobed in the warm embrace of God. We can breathe freely and live in hope, as we trust in the power of God's perfect love.

"For we have not received a spirit of fear, but of power and love and a sound mind" ~ 2 Timothy 1:7

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