I Took The First Step, Smashing Fear! - Amy Lee

I had given authority to fear in my life. 

How often does fear influence us and hold us back from the things God has for us? I have been letting fear grip me, restrain me and hold me back for my whole life. When I realised that I had given authority to fear and not to our Lord and Saviour, I was completely shocked. Over the past two years, this has been an area of focus for me: breaking fear off of my life and putting God in His rightful place. I thought that I had overcome fear, however, God reveals issues to me in layers, and right now I am dealing with the next layer.

A few months ago God woke me up in the middle of the night - I heard His audible voice saying write! That was the only time I heard God’s audible voice. This revealed such a deep holy fear within me. I would love to say that I was completely obedient but I was not.

I grew up in a family that didn’t value positive talk, so my parents didn’t speak life over my siblings and I. I was behind in my learning at school, especially in the reading and spelling department. I grew up with the understanding that I wasn’t very intelligent. This mindset had been holding me back from doing what God has asked me to do. He has been encouraging me to start writing, showing me that I am intelligent, that I am capable and that I can do all things through His strength. God had been placing people in my path to get me started, opening doors of opportunity - but I allowed fear to stop me. I allowed the words that were spoken over me as a child to define who I was and what I could do, until today. 

This morning I woke with the scripture Jeremiah 17:5-10 in my spirit. (Side note; I didn’t know the scripture, I only had a few words from the scripture, so I typed it into Google, which gave me the full scripture I had been hearing. I tell you this because I get discouraged from time to time when it seems like people around me know scripture off by heart and I don’t. Remember to be kind to yourself, we are all a work in progress and we will get there in the end.) Back to the scripture in Jeremiah, the words that rang in my heart when I was reading it were;

“This is what the Lord says: “Cursed are those who put their trust in mere humans, who rely on human strength and turn their hearts away from the Lord. They are like stunted shrubs in the desert, with no hope for the future. They will live in the barren wilderness, in an uninhabited salty land. “But blessed are those who trust in the Lord and have made the Lord their hope and confidence. They are like trees planted along a riverbank, with roots that reach deep into the water. Such trees are not bothered by the heat or worried by long months of drought. Their leaves stay green, and they never stop producing fruit.

“The human heart is the most deceitful of all things, and desperately wicked. Who really knows how bad it is? But I, the Lord, search all hearts and examine secret motives. I give all people their due rewards, according to what their actions deserve.” Jeremiah 17:9-10 (NLT)

This completely blew me away. I have been feeling a little stunted lately - I keep walking forward but I haven’t been able to see much fruit. I have been relying on my own human strength and not trusting in God.

Today I step out in obedience and write, I step out and trust God and I choose not to let fear hold me back.

I am going to see the fruit that God has promised me in this scripture. I don’t know what that promise looks like but I’m excited because God uses all things for good and keeps all His promises.

Stepping out in obedience can be a form of worship. What is worship? Is it where you sing, raising your hands, could it be where you get filled up? Is worship unto God always joyful and does it always feel amazing? This is how most of us see worship, but I believe worship is also about stepping out in obedience. Our work can be our worship, being in an uncomfortable space can be our worship, walking out the plan that God has for us is worship. 

When God has planted a seed, a dream inside of us, we cannot let fear stop us. We have to push through. Push past the fear, because this is your worship unto God. 

When I'm hurting or struggling I choose to worship by pushing past fear, drawing near to God and placing my trust in His strength. In a sense the challenges I face become the very things that draw me into a deeper place with God.

Not only does it break things off our lives when we step out and advance past fear, but it helps bring breakthrough for others around us - to our friends and family, but most importantly our children. We don’t want to see them be held back by fear so we need to show them how it is done. God’s word says;

“Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go." Joshua 1:9 (NIV)

May I ask you today; Is fear holding you back from your dreams? I encourage you today to take the first step in smashing that fear! You never know who is watching you. Your breakthrough could also bring breakthrough in someone else's life!

Written by Amy Lee

Amy is married to Calvin Lee and have three kids Hayley, Levi an Jazzmin. Amy lives in Perth and is on Kingdomcity Team.