During the month of October, I’m following along with Edie & Ruth on their 31 Days of Less & More journey. I’d love for you to join in by reading the posts and completing the projects, or just sit back and read along each day.
Less Fear
All my life, I’ve battled fear and insecurity. I’ve worried what people would think. I’ve thought in worst case scenarios. I’ve feared the unknown, the known, and the might happen. In the process, I’ve wasted a lot of time and energy on fear.
In the last few years, God has been bringing people around me who are challenging me to stop living in fear and start living in faith. Fear paralyzes. Faith frees.
Punching fear in the face has been a very stretching experience. It’s not been a one-time thing, either (oh, how I wish it were that easy!). I’ve had to get up and go face the fear monsters over and over again.
But each and every time that I step outside my comfort zone and confront my fears, there’s been rich rewards. And it’s been every bit worth it.
More Courage
“You can choose courage or you can choose comfort. But you can’t choose both.” -Brene Brown
Courage doesn’t require a lack of fear; it just requires a willingness to act in spite of fear. You have to get up, make that phone call, knock on that door, send that email, walk onto that stage, take that first step, or stay when you want to run.
It will feel uncomfortable. It might make your heart race. It might be painful. But in the end, choosing courage over fear is always the right choice.
In fact, the more you exercise your courage muscle, the stronger it will become. And I promise that it will bring you a sense of fulfillment and excitement that you’ll never experience if you stay stuck cowering in fear.
For more on this topic, check out Ruth’s post on Less Fear and Edie’s post on More Courage. I promise you’ll be inspired and blessed!
Tshanina @ Thrifty T's Treasures says
I too am one that has battled insecurity all of my life. Over the past few years the Lord has been stretching me out of my comfort zone.
I totally agree that stretching out of our comfort zone brings rich rewards!
Thanks for sharing!
deborah says
I wonder why I’ve spent so much time caring what other people think when I know I can’t please everyone anyway!!
So many things in life take practice. Often we aren’t that great at something, yet as we learn and practice we get better and better till the thing we’re learning is second nature. Why would courage be any different? I’m too easily intimidated when something is new and when it involves a lot of people. God has stretched me in a lot of ways the last few years and though it hasn’t always been easy or how I would’ve chosen, I am thankful!
Faith frees indeed.
Jim says
This is GREAT Crystal! One thing my buddy Jon Acuff says is “Fear fears community.” So so true.
I think fear is the one thing that really holds us back–and the biggest lie is often that we are the only one who is afraid of being alone/rejected/not liked/failure etc. We ALL face the same challenges and fears–and through community you can find amazing strength.
Crystal says
Thanks for your kind encouragement, Jim!
Julie says
I received this blog post in my email this morning. I thought it was relevant to the “Less Fear” topic.
http://www.truewoman.com/?id=2636
Crystal says
Thanks so much for sharing!
Melanie @ carmelmoments.com says
I’m so excited to join in on the less/more journey. So excited. I need to sit down with my thoughts and begin to write all the areas I need less/more. Thanks for sharing your heart Crystal!
Crystal says
Thanks for joining us in this journey!
Jamie Rohrbaugh says
Very good encouragement. The fear goes away with each little step! – and with each time we look at how big God is instead of how little we are.
Erika Dawson says
Fear has been a stronghold for me, too, Crystal. Cheering you on, girl! God is using you to influence so many women for his glory!
Amy says
Heard this on KLOVE a while back: Fear is False Evidence Appearing Real.
Jennifer says
I once read that the only time a person can be courageous is when he or she is afraid.
Joy says
THAT is awesome!
Carrie says
Crystal I decided to give my voices the silent treatment. It works GREAT. 🙂 I’m doing a #31Days challenge too on my blog, and I chose HABITS for my topic.
Crystal says
Love it! And what a great 31-Day Challenge idea!
Ann says
Personally I like Love > Fear instead of punching it in the face… http://www.lovegreater.org
Ann says
Oops, http://lovegreater.org