For God does not give a spirit of fear, but of power, love, and a sound mind.
Pause a moment, breathe deeply. Breathe in the spirit of God and breathe out anything distracting you from a moment's peace. Now, consider if there is fear hidden in you.
Fear motivates so many other negative feelings and ungracious behaviors. Fear makes us overly cautious when we consider actions and defensive when we engage in conversation with those who know us best. Fear causes us to hide; to equivocate in sharing our thoughts and to deny our deeper feelings. Fear runs away with our imaginations so that today's manageable troubles become overwhelming burdens for as far into the future as we can project them. And fear argues against faith and fights against the spirit of power, love, and truth.
Henry Emerson Fosdick has said: "Fear imprisons, faith liberates; fear paralyzes, faith empowers; fear disheartens, faith encourages; fear sickens, faith heals; fear makes useless, faith makes serviceable; and, most of all, fear puts hopelessness at the heart of life, while faith rejoices in its God."
So, if you recognize fear inside you, don't dwell on it. Overcome it with faith. Whatever threatens you, God is greater; and God is on your side. By faith, stand with the spirit of God and cast out fear from your heart and timidity from your mind. Take the risks of faith, for the spirit of power, love, and self control is yours. So be it (amen)!