Stop Scaring Yourself!

“A simple man (woman) believes anything…” Proverbs 14:15.

I’m familiar with scaring myself. Are you? Being a natural wimp, I’ve battled my scary self-talk for a long time:

• Blessed with a vivid imagination, I once sat and cried in fear. Why? Because my husband and son (the pilot!) were flying over mountains and forests in southern Oregon in a small plane and I was convinced it would crash. It didn’t happen.     
• When my daughter decided to go backpacking through Europe and would be traveling alone for a week, my fears put me in a panic. Springing into action, I eagerly offered to go with her. Me, who had never backpacked in my life! In this case, my scary thoughts had a positive outcome—I survived and grew!
• Several times significant opportunities to speak into women’s lives reduced me to a quivering mass of tears. One was to a large conference in Michigan. Another was to speak in Australia for six weeks.  Each event is now a wonderful memory. 

With all that is happening in our world, it is easy to be anxious about our safety, our health, the life and choices of those we love and our future. But worry and anxiety doesn’t help us in any way. As followers of Jesus, we can, and need to, learn to overcome the power of our fearful thoughts.
 
To begin, here are some practical things we can do to experience this:

1. Realize you scare yourself by what you focus on.
2. Recognize that rehearsing your fears to yourself or to others only increases the power of fear over you.
3. Resist being held hostage by your scary thoughts.
4. Refuse to cling to your fears; instead, out loud, intentionally affirm, “God is with me!”

Here’s an exercise I’ve learned and pass on to women who struggle with anxiety and fear:
Train yourself to :

1. SPOT IT!  As soon as you feel anxious or stressed, ask God to help you know what’s causing it. David cried out, “I sought the Lord and he answered me; he delivered me from all my fears” Psalm 14:4. Keep praying and processing until you identify what’s prompting your concerns.  

2. STOP IT! Once you’ve identified your scary self-talk, tell yourself, STOP IT!  You’re not a helpless victim of your thoughts or emotions.  “God did not give you a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, love and self-discipline” 2 Peter 1:7.  In other words, stand up to your fears and say, “this isn’t from God and I won’t let it control me.”

3. SWAP IT! From obsessing about what might happen, switch to words of faith: I am God’s beloved, I am precious to Him, He never abandons me, He is for me.  Ask yourself, “Is this thought, fear, assumption coming from God, my Father?  Is this how He wants me to respond?”

4. SPEAK IT!  Reinforce the truth of who you are and how God sees you by repeating Scriptures out loud. Write down words, phrases, and verses that strengthen your trust. Repeat to yourself, “I am His, He will guide me, and He is my Strength for all that lies ahead.

There’s so much more help on this topic for you, or someone you know who struggles with limiting fears and anxieties. You’ll find encouragement and direction in my new E-book, HOW TO CONQUER YOUR WORRY AND FEAR! It is full of God’s words on this topic plus practical tips for how to stop scaring yourself!  

Order it at: https://www.poppysmith.com/store/  
It’s priced to be accessible for anyone!  Price: 4.99
 
My prayer is that you live with God’s peace,
Poppy