LOVE IS POSITIVE: IT’S FAITHFUL; NOT FEARFUL
If
you could get rid of all your fears – death, rejection, losing, and criticism, how
different would your life be? If you could be free to attain all your dreams,
goals and aspirations, how would the world mean to you? We are often deceived
about the powerful and destructive force of fear because it does not produce
violent outbursts like anger.
But fear, which breeds into various negative thought
patterns and emotions – anxiety, worry, pessimism, doubts, timidity,
inferiority, depression, social shyness etc. is just as powerful and destructive
if not to others, to the fearful person, like anger.
Fear is the belief that
you are powerless and that you can’t do anything. Someone rightly defined FEAR
as “False Evidence/Expectation Appearing Real”.
Causes of Fear
Experts
assert that one major factor of fear is one’s temperament traits. Almost all
temperaments have tendency towards fear – Melancholics and Phlegmatics are more
fear-prone. Parenting and upbringing is another factor. Angry and explosive
parents who dominate their children by being critical on every “mistake” they
make often create insecurity and fear in them. Certain traumatic experiences
like abuse, assault, and molestation particularly in childhood can also have negative
influences on a person, making them fearful.
Again,
repeated failure can cause further breakdown in self-confidence and increase
fear making a person afraid to attempt and accomplish something.
Sin,
certainly causes fear in us. The first reaction of Adam and Eve, after they had
disobeyed God (sinned) was that of fear (Gen.3:8-10), and ever since, the
further we disobey God, the more we become afraid.
The “Poison" of Fear
Fear
inhibits every area of your life – crippling your talents and potentials;
restricting your normal feeling, flow and expression of love; shelving your
confidence; and paralyzing your dreams and aspirations.
Spiritually,
fear puts you in bondage preventing you from doing what is right and proper;
even worse, it can prevent you from acting according to God’s perfect will, and
doing many ministerial works. Verily, the fearful person cannot please God
(Heb.11:6).
Physically,
fear destroys your health. A fearful person will “think” of a disease he has
such that the anxiety will produce so much stress, and aggravate it to death.
Relationally and emotionally,
fear-dominated individuals are not fun to be around with. Many men and women
are too fearful to express their innermost feelings and love to each other – the
love and relationship eventually dies out.
Our
inability to express our love and open up to others because of fear – we not
able to trust anyone – cause us to withdraw from people and this further
deepens our emotional disturbances.
Economically,
fear inhibits most of our potentials, making us unable to fulfill our purpose
and dreams. Many are those who quit entering into promising business ventures, and
lose rewarding opportunities because of fear.
Face Your Fears
Unless
you give permission to your fears, it can’t rule you. You need to overcome your
fears. You need to embrace and confront it; else you will become your own
enemy.
Acknowledging
the existence of your fear is the first step to overcoming it. Once this has
been done, then you are on the road to recovery.
Fear
knocked at the door, and when Faith answered, there was no one.
Obviously,
Faith is the antidote to Fear. The
Bible explicitly mentions “Fear Not”, 365 times, one for each day of the year,
and extensively admonishes us not to worry (Mtt.6:25), and be anxious for
nothing (Phil.4:6).
Fear
is contagious, but faith cures it. Faith cancels our tendency to fear.
But
faith works by love (Gal.5:6). Without love, faith doesn’t work. Love is the
action that motivates faith. If your faith is failing you, you need to check
yourself in your love walk.
When
the fearful person puts on his magnifying lens of fear, it magnifies
difficulties; but when the faithful person puts on his magnifying lens of Faith,
it magnifies possibilities, casting out all fear to make everything look better
and brighter.
Love
makes us know the excitement of optimism, the power of hope, and the peace of
faith. Love is Positive.
References:
- Spirit-Controlled Temperament by Tim LaHaye
- Love: The Way to Victory by Kenneth E. Hagin
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