God calls us to a courageous life. We need to take up the call of faith over fear. I know personally how disappointments of yesterday can drain us of energy for today and tomorrow, how dashed hopes can make us start to doubt our own abilities and judgments at work. I hope, can be a turning point, a flipping point, in your life. I want to inspire you to make bold steps forward in what you do, to punch through the paralysis of fear and leap out the comfort zone.
Here are what I call five “fear flippers”— tools and biblical promises that I've learned turn my fear to faith.
1. Look to Jesus
Start your working day by turning your eyes upon Jesus, the source of true courage and he will fill you with boldness. “In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world” (John 16:33). Fear is a powerful impostor, but Jesus has overcome the world that tries to breathe fear into life. The God who has overcome all things on the cross is with us and beside us. Failure, suffering, pain, and trouble all might come. But our God is greater than anything on this earth. And “if God is for us, who can be against us?” (Romans 8:31).
2. Break the Lie
Do not forget that you are in a spiritual battle at work, facing an enemy, the ‘father of lies’ (John 8:44), who is lurking behind your fears. Do remember that the battle is already won by God, and that the devil therefore needs to deceive and makes us erode our trust in Jesus. Take the lie captive and break it. Once we know that behind most fears lurks a lie, then we can ignore it by remembering God’s truths.
3. Speak the Word
Speaking out the truth of scripture has the power to flip the fear, as it has the “divine power to demolish strongholds” (2 Corinthians 10:4). Words of God’s love, of his faithful promises, and of his power—when spoken out in faith—can dismantle the walls that fear tries to build around us. Jesus repeats three words when faced with temptation, “It is written” (Luke 4:4, 8, 12). Jesus needs no logical debate or conversation – scripture needs no assistance - it has power and momentum on its own. Remind yourself what is written and speak the Word.
4. Remember to Trust
Fear can force employees to execute projects, but it cannot energize people. Fear is crippling and inhibiting, and it is one of the most dehumanizing forces in the workplace. Fear may govern your workplace. But remember, you are trusted and emboldened by God to stand against the claim that fear has the power to dominate your life. By the Spirit of God, you can consciously embrace the truth you know about God’s character. Choose to walk not by fear but by trust—by faith.
5. Throw yourself in
In my experience, fear cannot be dealt with equivocally. It needs the robust flow of the love of God in full flood to drown its efforts. It is the work of the devil to pretend that those lurking fears of the future are alive and real. It is the work of Jesus, through the Holy Spirit, to remind us that they have been overcome. Throw yourself in and know, in every fibre of your being, that you have the victory over fear and need to act accordingly every day. Build a bedrock of faith in Christ that ‘cannot be shaken’ (Hebrews 12: 28).
