Feel the Fear -- And Do It ANYWAY

Fear is so often a wall that keeps people from realizing the fullness of their potential. Perhaps that sounds cliche, and maybe it is cliche, but it is still truth.

As I reflect on my journey from Traditional Male/Female roles in the Church structure to what is most commonly referred to as Egalitarian theology, I can see many places along that road where fear was present and operated to imprison me within the Traditional.

For many years, I didn't know how to handle the feelings I had inside me that I needed to speak up about various insights that the Lord would give me. I can recall being about 23 and having a woman in my church whom I admired,firmly 'scold' me about being too strong as a woman. She herself had very definite opinions and was a leader among the women, but she was also very intentional about keeping her 'proper place' in relation to the men. At her admonition to remain 'quiet and gentle', I felt such shame. There was little about me that was quiet and gentle.

As I type those words, tears well up in me for the young women that received that 'helpful directive' in shame. For so many years, I attempted in earnest, to hide my true self. I battled constantly with the idea that, on the one hand, I was meant to stay quiet and fulfill a 'feminine role' and on the other hand there was a deep and compelling need to stand up and speak against so many things I saw in the church that were harmful. The young Me hardly knew which was right, but I was mostly inclined to distrust myself rather than my spiritual leaders. After all, they had 'spiritual authority'. (I'll be writing on that topic at some point)

Feel the Fear and Do It Anyway is the title of a book a dear friend told me about years ago. I've still not read the book, but I have borrowed it's title as a sort of life motto. Fear seems to be a pretty tight companion for many people in the modern world. There are many reason's for this of course, but very few solutions it would seem.

More often than not, fear results in a version of hiding. We hide from what we think may happen most often. Again, this is evident in many different ways and can be difficult to detect because some of our responses manage to disguise the underlying cause, namely, FEAR.

The bible uses the word fear 336 times in the NIV, 385 times in the NASB, 437 times in the ESV, 501 times in the KJV, and 330 in the NLT. If you do a word study, you discover that there are a number of Hebrew and Greek words translated fear in the Scripture but one that dominates the Hebrew writings and one root which dominates in the New Testament writings.

For today's purposes, I won't go deep into the Hebrew or Greek (truth be told, I'd likely botch it as I'm a scholar of neither). I do, however, find joy in the realization that when I performed my online search, though there are hundreds of places this word is used in the Scripture, only one verse repeatedly showed up at the top of the list. 1 John 4:18 which says;

"There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love."

Why does this specific verse show up? I think it is because it is the one most necessary for our modern world to connect with. Where fear is such a ruling factor in our world (think about how many of us suffer with anxiety, think about headlines, think about how in our churches, the possibility of 'wrong doctrine' seems like a huge DANGER sign at the edge of a giant precipice) it seems imperative that we begin to focus on how we must overcome it's grip on our lives.

The reality is that we can't avoid the experience of fear. Fear will happen, perhaps primarily because we live in a world that is outside of our control on basically every level. But John, in his letter to the Church offers a seemingly simple truth whose meaning is meant to set us free from the ruling nature of fear itself. He offers the only viable antidote to the poisonous bite of fear. 

LOVE.

Perfect Love.

Read through the book of 1 John and listen to what John is saying about the transforming power of love in the body of Christ, in the individual. It is insanely powerful. It is about acceptance and belonging even amid the realities of sin and the struggle to live as we are called to live. Note especially Chapters 4 and 5 and their emphasis on how love is meant to set us free from fear and even from sin.

I read one author's comments on how God was known to Jacob as 'The Fear of Isaac'. I don't know for certain what he meant, It seemed that he meant it as a 'shaking in my boots' type of fear. And yes, it's in the Scriptures as a descriptive of Father God, but I think many of those pictures of God from the Old Testament get misunderstood to be the idea that God is wrathful and angry and waiting to squash anyone who gets out of line.

For myself, I'm more inclined to think of the fear of God as wisdom that causes me to care more about what my loving God thinks about me than I do about what any other person thinks. (and really, I don't love the use of the word fear for how we relate to our Loving Father, revere would be a much better choice most of the time in our modern understanding)THIS is the fear that brings life rather than death. But perfect LOVE casts out the 'shaking in your boots' fear because, as John says so clearly, that type of fear is waiting in anticipation of punishment and that is not in keeping with the love of a good Father who desires and provides for relationship.

So how do we Feel the Fear and Do it Anyway? We invite the Author of pure Love to cover us in that Love to the freeing end that fear has to leave. Yes, we feel the fear and we introduce it to Jesus and it runs like hell!

I'd go so far as to say that it may be a good idea to actually have this conversation. It'd go something like this.

Fear of Rejection: "I've come to remind you that when you walk in that door in a minute, you are going to get the WORST critique of your life. You'll never make it here. Don't even try!"
Me: "Fear of rejection, I'd like to introduce you to Jesus."
Fear: "No, I don't want to meet Jesus!!!!!!"
Jesus: (enters from stage right)"Bummer for you Fear of Rejection because here I am!"
Me: "Jesus, what do you have to say to Fear of Rejection?"
Jesus: "Fear of rejection, I love Danielle so much and so perfectly that she is 100% accepted. It isn't because of anything she's done, it's just because I am Perfect Love and I've decided to let my Love cloak her like a blanket. Here, let me show you to the door."
Fear: (hangs head in shame and exits stage left, whining all the way about how it had the power until Love showed up)

Yeah, maybe that is a little cheesy but it's truth. Fear is a liar. But lies have no power when exposed to the light. So the next time Fear tries to cheat you out of an experience, a moment, a relationship, a challenge....... Feel the Fear, and Do it Anyway.