Conquering Fear Is Simple
when you learn that you can do it
Did you know that each and every one of our character defects have a common denominator? Fear is the common denominator of all of our shortcomings.
Let’s look at some:
Anxiety — fear of getting something or something happening;
Depression — fear of what MAY happen;
Anger — fear of not knowing what to do about a situation;
Frustration — fear of being unable to deal with a situation to our liking; and on and on.
The above is a list of fears. What is the opposite of fear? It is not guts or valor or bravery. The Opposite of fear is faith!
“I am afraid of getting into a situation where I reflexively take a drink.” ‘I am afraid of what someone else will say if I do such and such.”
We have all had them and what did the fear result in? Did the right answer immediately come to mind? Not very often for me! Fear can do one of two things to me — it can keep me stuck or it can be a great teacher.
Reverend Jane Beach, a retired New Thought minister, said recently in The Science of Mind magazine, “Fears are thoughts I created in my own head, and if I created them, I can change them.”
We have talked about doing this change before and this just reinforces our talks. When I discover just what scares me, I move on to a new level of self-understanding.
By acting on this new understanding, I begin to work my way through these fears and the effects are similar to bowling pins knocking each other over. One just naturally leads to another and on and on.
I can soon discover that I am not powerless. Instead of letting my fears paralyze me, I can pray, find reasons to be grateful, and focus on happy outcomes. In this way, I can control my fears and not let them control me.
Many of my fears were nameless — they were just there and I hadn’t a clue what or why. During these times, I would wake up in the middle of the night in a cold sweat and not know why.
When my fear of taking another drink changed to a healthy respect for what it could do, I quickly discovered that I was going for much longer time periods without even thinking of taking a drink.
What happens to my fears? As soon as I began doing the above — praying, finding reasons to be grateful, and focusing on happy outcomes — BAM! The fears began melting away.
A good night’s sleep became the norm instead of the exception. Waking up in the middle of the night in a cold sweat ceased happening. New thoughts and ways of doing things no longer paralyzed me, they excited me.
You are not listening to the rants of a deranged man but one that is speaking from the strength acquired by doing the above and doing it consistently.
“Yeah, but, if you had this situation coming up like I have you would be fearful too!” No more “Yeah, buts” for me. I am Happy, Joyous, and Free and my hope, no my fervent prayer, is that you are happy, joyous, and free.
At least as much as I am and even more so. As soon as you surpass my joy, I will be first in line to ask you “How did you do it?” because I really want to know.
In this way, we can use each other as springboards for each other to be truly Happy, Joyous, and Free. It all starts with doing away with the fears. Don’t be afraid of living.
Be happy with the fact that you can now truly live and enjoy life. If you didn’t drink or drug today, you now have choices, maybe for the first time.
Do you choose to be miserable or do you choose to be Happy, Joyous, and Free? The choice is yours and nobody else’s. Choose wisely! Thank you, God!
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For more viewpoints on similar topics please go to two writers and editors for Dancing Elephants Press that I admire, Dr. Preeti Singh and Dr. Gabrielle Korosi.
