Is Fear Keeping You From Possessing God's Best For You?

I wonder how many of us are standing at the edge of something new and wonderful God wants to do in our life, but fear is keeping us from fully entering in to it?

The Bible is filled with stories about a people group called the Israelites. They were God’s chosen people. Through a series of jaw-dropping, glory-filled circumstances, God delivered them out of slavery so that he might bring them into abundant life. But the journey to that abundant life required a trip through the desert. It would’ve been nice if God had just given them the new land, don’t you think? Why couldn’t he have tucked their labor-weary bodies into bed one night, and then handed them a get-out-of-jail free card in the morning, along with an instant access card to the promised land? Hadn’t they already been through enough?

God had a higher and greater plan for his chosen people that could only be accomplished through the trial-filled steps through the desert. He knew that for his people to really be set free, they would have to learn to trust him and surrender their way for his way. Because the Israelites had to go through the desert, they experienced God’s miracles, provision and comfort. For those who weren’t overcome by sin and bitterness, they were overcome instead, by a deeper relationship with God. Their relationship with God is what sustained them and strengthened them throughout the rest of their lives. They came to see that God’s plans were to prosper them, not to harm them; plans to give them hope and a bright future (Jeremiah 29:11).

The story of the Israelites is there for us to use as a parallel to God’s plan for us, his Chosen and Crowned daughters.

Each one of us enters this world enslaved to sin. We are born with a sin nature. It drives our selfishness and leads us to do things that seem good and right in the moment, but ultimately leads to pain, fear, hopelessness, discouragement, loneliness, and anger. The list could go on. We wake up one day and wonder how we got ourselves into such a mess.

The beautiful thing is that God is not repulsed by our mess. Quite the contrary. God desperately wants you to give him your mess so he can set you free from it. Did you know that from the moment you were born, God hasn’t stopped pursuing your heart and drawing you to himself with everlasting love and kindness? He knows that sin has taken its toll on your heart, mind and soul, and he longs to build you up again into the woman he first created you to be. This is good news! We do not have to stay in our mess. We can be free and watch God restore us from the inside out (Jeremiah 31:3-4).

Oh friend, take pause on this truth! God promises to rebuild you and lead you into a new land filled with prosperity, hope and a bright future!

But, be warned. Your journey to abundant life will require much of you. It will require that you throw yourself at the feet of Jesus, because without him, you will never see your promised land. You’re going to have to trust him every step of the way.

But know this too, God does not want you in the desert forever. The Israelites spent 40 years in the desert when the journey should have taken only 11 days! How many of us wander again and again around the mountain of toxic thoughts, relationships, and choices because they are familiar and comfortable? Dear friend, you may be standing today just on the other side of your promised land, but fear is keeping you from taking the steps God has clearly commanded you to take. This is called a crisis of faith. You must decide for yourself if you are going to trust God or not. Will you obey or not?

If fear is keeping you in the desert, hear God’s words to the Israelite leader, Joshua, who desperately needed encouraged as he stood at the trial-filled border of the promised land, “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go” (Joshua 1:9). Joshua faced a crisis of faith. For him to take the risk, he had to recall God’s faithfulness to him in the desert and trust that his God was still a God of miracles, provision and comfort.

Friend, as you boldly take that next scary step, you too will experience God’s continued faithfulness to you. He will not let you be destroyed. Remember, his plan is to rebuild you and give you a bright future.May this new year be the year you get out of the desert and enter your promised land. By the way, I look forward to being a part of your journey! Let me know how I can be praying for you. Love you, my Chosen and Crowned friend. 

Anna Frye is a speaker, author, television host and founder of the Chosen and Crowned tribe. She invites moms and wives to celebrate imperfect progress fueled by the grace of a perfect God. She helps women bravely talk about the messy places of life, instead of hiding shamefully under them. She believes that lasting beauty comes when women courageously surrender their ashes to God and allow him to do something mind-blowingly amazing with them. If this resonates with you, then you belong with the Chosen and Crowned tribe. Connect at www.ChosenAndCrowned.com/blog