Fear Fighting: Do you Live Fear or Faith?

Do you live fear or faith?  It is a question worth taking a hard look at.  Today I’m thrilled to introduce you to a beautiful writer who speaks my language, our language.  Kelly Balarie fights hard to awaken courage and choose brave.  She lives it.  She knows what it is like to live in fear and what it is like to walk in faith and from those experiences she vulnerably pours out, inspiring others to fight fear as well.  Today her new book Fear Fighting: Awakening courage to overcome your fears enters the world and she has been generous enough to share with us some encouragement gleaned straight from the heart of that book.  I hope you enjoy her passion as much as I do! (Some of the links in this post may be affiliate links.  As always, you can view our full disclosure policy here.)

 

Just yesterday, my friend told me her daughter has lice. 

I hugged that girl yesterday!

Would lice go from her hair to mine? Would I be cleaning the entire house, washing every sheet and stuffed animal, and pulling a thin comb through every inch of hair on my family’s heads from now until eternity? I can’t handle this thought. Next time, fist bumps will trump hugs.

Fear is the plumbing of discontentment.
It is the spillage of hesitation and loneliness.
It is the brakes to love.
It is the bulldozer to close relationships.
Fear is the boundary holding you back from God’s unlimited plan for you.

Fear is the rain cloud that always follows, the homicide to all God has, the breeding ground to insecurities, the shortness of breath that wakes you up at night, the cemetery of faith, and the artery blockage to the Spirit’s leading.

Fear is a wildfire that makes you run so far that you find galaxies of space between you and your great maker. It is the blocked artery to faith. It is the burden that keeps persisting. It is the laryngitis to the voice proclaiming God.

I hate fear. I’ve written all about it in my new book, Fear Fighting: Awakening the Courage to Overcome Your Fears.

It makes my eyes pulsate. I get angry at it.

But, here’s the thing about getting angry –  the second I do is the second I have a deep gnawing feeling God wants to say something. Somehow, I know, if I don’t listen to it I’ll miss out on – amazing.

 

 

So, I search and uncover God’s heart. What I come to is this: “Faith, dear child, faith.”

Faith says, you can. Fear says, you won’t.
Faith ignites passion. Fear depletes it.
Faith brings hope. Fear fire hoses it.
Faith changes lives. Fear wrecks them.
Faith makes Jesus shine. Fear desecrates his name.
Faith charges lives. Fear zaps them.
Faith walks in hope of eternity. Fear cowers down to death.
Faith doesn’t have to be huge. Fears always are.
Faith exalts Jesus. Fear bows down to the devil.
Faith speaks humility. Fear listens to pride.
Faith accepts grace. Fear hugs shame.
Faith knows it’s not perfect. Fear thinks God leaves the imperfect.
Faith wins every time. 

Faith takes I-am-going-over-the-cliff moments and turns them around. Suddenly, you realize you aren’t going over the cliff to die, but to fly.

Where do you need faith? How can you create a second of space, before rapidly responding in fear?

I’ve found if I can just halt my response for a second, I have a second to choose God. He is full of grace. He is rooting for us. There is freedom for those in Christ Jesus.

 

Interested in fighting fear?  Join Kelly’s  4 Days to Fearless Challenge.

I’ve read Kelly’s new book, friends, and it reads like grace.  However, Kelly has not always fought fear.  For a large part of her life, she was controlled by it.  In her book she charts a new course. She is on a lifetime journey to go and grow with Christ’s bravery, the Spirit’s counsel and God’s unending love that squelches fear.  Tackling large fears and crushing anxiety as well the small and quieter fears that haunt us deep, the ones we rarely talk about, Kelly leaves no stone unturned.  She offers prayer, hope and inspiration while vulnerably sharing her own very real struggles.  Fear fighting is definitely a part of choosing brave, friends, and Kelly’s passion to fight fear with truth is contagious.  I hope her words were a gift to you today.

 

More about Kelly Balarie

Kelly is an author, speaker, a cheerleader of Faith and a Fighter of Fear. She leans on the power of God, rests on the shoulder of Christ, and discovers how to glow in the dark places of life. Get all Kelly’s blog posts by email or visit her on her blog, Purposeful Faith. You can also find a variety of resources for your fight against fear here.