Freedom From Fear

"What if it ends? How do I make that anxiety go away?"

My friend's words seemed to fall through the phone and I felt the silence pound as I tried to gather my thoughts. How do you take someone's fear away?

I remember that feeling. Feeling scared that a relationship would end, scared that I might lose my job, or scared that my life might not look exactly as I planned it. I sometimes still feel that fear. We all crave control, but...

Our lives our not our own.

We don't get to plan them out. And seriously, thank God for that.

I mean it, thank Him.

The best part about God's plan, is that it is so much better than ours.

When Josiah and I first dated freshmen year of college, we were so young and immature. My world gravitated around that boy when it should have been focused on God. So we broke up.

I was devastated at the time, but I am so thankful for the growth that came through that journey.

It's funny how God works... Five years later we started dating again. Two years after that, we got married.

Had we continued to date without God at the center of our hearts we would never be where we are today.

Our relationship is stronger because we followed God's plan and not our own.

I had a similar feeling while working (what I thought) was my dream job.  I was working myself to death and letting the higher ups walk all over me because I thought I needed their approval to succeed.

My life was lived in fear and anxiety because I was trying to fix the situation myself. I was trying to create success on my own.

I was holding on so tightly that I forgot to let God be a part of it.

Giving God my whole life and my whole self means that I don't have to feel that kind of fear. He takes it away.

Fully trusting in His will and plan for you means that you don't have to stress over decisions anymore.

How freeing is that?

God knows your heart and your true desires even when your vision is blurry. His will for your life will always be more true than the plans you create for yourself.

I know, I know. Easier said than done. I'm still working on it, too.

But God is good, and we can ask Him to help us. I can already tell the difference it has made to just acknowledge the beautiful story that He has already woven through my life.

For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." - Jeremiah 29:11

Until next time,

xxLT