Facing Fear

Several years ago when I worked in Dallas I was coming home from work. It was a normal routine of driving home and everything was fine. Then as I was approaching a major intersection a car ran a red light and caused a five car wreck which I was one of the cars in the wreck. I wasn’t injured, but a little shook. My car had some damage, but not too bad.

For the next couple of months when I would pass that intersection I would slow down and check twice before going through. It took a month or so before I was able to go through that intersection with ease.

What happened that night was a fear was placed in my mind, but after that the fear had become unrealistic. The truth was I could have had another accident at any other time and many other places, but the fear I had at this place was now unrealistic. Most people didn’t have a fear of this intersection. Why? Because they hadn’t had the same experience.

A person who has ever been in a tornado will always have a greater fear and respect for tornados than someone who had just seen them on TV. The same goes for a person who has had their house broken into, a woman that was raped, a person that was mugged and so on. Any kind of trauma at a certain place or situation can leave a severe fear.

The normal thing we usually do is to avoid these places or situations allowing the fear to control us and grow even stronger which sometimes becomes debilitating. The only way I know how to deal with these fears is to face them and deal with them in truth. “Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” John 8:32 If I would have changed my route to and from work I would have never overcome my fear of that intersection. As I said, it didn’t go away the first time I went back. It took several times. Even to this day I can’t help but remember that intersection when I go through it, but when I do there is no fear.

You cannot bring the fear to you; you have to go to the fear. If you bring the fear to you it just intensifies the fear. You have to face to fear. Something else I noticed was when I had to go into work for a meeting during the daylight hours everything looked so different at that intersection and it lost its power. In Jesus was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. John 1:4-5

Fear has paralyzed me for large part of my life and has kept me from doing so many things and it has caused me to cheat myself and others. Fear makes us selfish. Are there any dark places in your heart you are afraid to face? Then I suggest you take the light with you. I guess what I am saying is who is suffering because of our fears? Who are we neglecting? What are we not doing because of fear?