#10 Don't mystify fear

Here’s one that needs to be talked about: don’t mystify fear. One of the greatest fears of man is the unknown. It shows us great and deep things about ourselves, and this can be used against you to keep you a prisoner of the gurus. I just had a moment where I sat down and wrote this in my personal journal:

“I suspect that the issue I am facing may run deeper than a few mere insecurities, but until I can uncover an issue, I will not admit to one.” 

I say this not out of pride, but out of a conqueror’s confidence. I know that there are things in my past that I will probably keep facing until the day I die. But this is not something to be afraid of. Rather, I should embrace this fact, ready for any attack that comes my way, confident that through God, I can still conquer it and lead a normal life. Yes, there are ghosts out there, lurking like shadows. Fear of something is as much about what isn’t there as what is. I don’t know if this is the same everywhere in the world, but where I grew up, summers always meant an onslaught of mosquitoes. No matter what we did, they always found a way to infiltrate our home. The worst part was that we could never seem to see where they were, we could simply hear them. All night long, they would make the most obnoxious buzzing sound. But the moment you would turn on the lights, it was like they were never there. A few nights, I was tempted to sleep with the lights on because it got so bad! One summer, I was haunted by them for several nights in a row. On the fourth night, they had finally found their way out, but I was so used to the noise that I actually had nightmares about them. I can still remember my mom walking in, asking me what I was upset about, confused because she couldn’t hear a thing!

Certain things have such a strong impact that just the thought of them can cause fear. And although it’s good to be cautious of big things like car wreck, the fear of might-be’s can often cause more harm than the thing itself. It’s important to draw the distinction between recognizing a potential threat and a fear being dangled in front of our faces. What I am trying to say is that absence is one of the best ways that fear shows up to haunt you. Don’t let what could be do more harm than it should. 

But there’s more to this topic than just the presence or absence of a real threat. This fear of the unknown can also be used by predators to control you. I believe that there are areas of our culture that use this quite heavily. Take how we use the word “anxiety,” for example. I’m not trying to discredit the nervous feeling that you get around new people, but when the topic comes up in conversation, I often feel like there’s a stigma that you don’t question it. And I don’t mean don’t question it in that we shouldn’t discredit the feelings of others, I mean just don’t touch it at all! Say anything that comes even remotely close to attacking its legitimacy! It’s a big, complicated way of saying don’t seek to understand it, because if we did, we’d see that it’s completely curable. Curable things have a finite treatment window, which means all the gurus, posing as therapists, won’t have permanent income. And that’s very bad for them. 

Always seek to question and understand what is around you. If you can’t come to an understanding of something being flashed in front of your face, write it off until it can be proven to be dangerous. Maintain a healthy dose of skepticism, and always believe that you can understand what is going on in your life. Especially when it comes to your own experiences. If you are easily swayed, someone will notice and take you where you don’t want to go. You will wind up doing their bidding without any concern for your own. I say this not to scare you (wouldn’t that be ironic!) but to encourage you! I want to see you become one of the strong, to the point where I start seeing comments about things I got wrong. (Respectfully, of course. I’m not inviting you to send me hate mail.) Ultimately, my prayer is that you become a strong, independent person that isn’t easily swayed. One that stays secure and firm in who you are and what you believe. I pray you have a great and wonderful day

Until next time

May Peace be your guide.