F E A R

*Sigh* Fear…
Fear is not foreign to any of us. For some it's a constant companion and for others it's a friend from the past who visits at the most inconvenient of times. There's a good fear that tells you..you're standing too close to the edge and you need to back up, and then there's the other fear, the one that tells you that you'll fail before you even get started.

I think we can both agree that FEAR is not your friend. It often holds you back and paralyzes you and it can often leave you feeling stuck. It's like a giant wall that reads "You Can't Do It. Don't Even Try". The crazy thing is fear is really 'self protection'. The tall walls of fear that keep you confined actually make you feel safe. It's comfortable; that's why they call it a 'comfort zone' and the second you try to step beyond the boundaries of what's comfortable fear will be there to greet you.

I want to share with you how I make fear work for me and how I keep fear in check so it's not ruling my life.




I also want to be clear that I am not fearless (as amazing as that sounds…I'm not. But here's how I deal with it).

Get a vision for what's on the other side!
If fear is a wall in your life you won't go through the trouble of getting on the other side until you want it MORE than where you currently are.

Once my mum and I were at a Safari in Zambia, Africa and there were these beautiful majestic lions in cages. I'll never forget when the zoo keeper told me "You know these Lions are actually able to jump over this fence to where we are standing. But they won't. We feed them food and keep them comfortable so they don't attempt to escape". We could so easily be like these lions; comfortable with where we're at, complaining even, but not willing to step out. The truth is the only reason that lion would escape it's cage is if it decided that it wanted to eat me more than it did the meal it was handed. (I'm glad they didn't ..but you get the idea). You've got to have a vision and a desire for what's beyond your comfort zone.

So my question for you is what is FEAR holding you back from? What are the things that you've thought of and spoken about doing but have yet to take the steps towards? What would it look like if you didn't let fear undermine your decisions in 2016?

Fear means you're on to something!
If you know me, you know that I love Jesus. The main thing that helps me overcome all fear is knowing that He is with me and having an unshakeable conviction that God's got my back. That being said the bible says in 2 Timothy 1:7 that "God has not given us a spirit of fear but of power, love and a sound mind." I love that. The spirit of FEAR isn't mine to own. It's not my master and I don't have to do what it tells me. So when I suddenly feel like fear is trying to grip my heart, I think of a scarecrow. I once heard this great analogy that Scarecrows are harmless but to birds they are scary. But the smartest birds recognize that scarecrows are placed where the best crops are located. Therefore, a wise bird uses the scarecrow to locate where the best crops are!

If you're feeling fearful it could be because you're on to something. I want to encourage you that just because you feel afraid doesn't disqualify you from trying and moving foreward. There have been times where I felt prompted by the Holy Spirit to do something but I felt inadequate and fearful so I would just pray "everything in me doesn't want to do this God. I want to but I'm afraid. Give me boldness. Help me" and I'm telling you His strength is made perfect in your weakness! He is more than able to make up for all that you lack. You can feel fear and still be obedient to all that He's called you to be & do.

Moving to Sydney Australia where I didn't know anyone and had no idea what to expect…I definitely felt fear. It also didn't help that everybody and their cousin reminded me that Australia was home to the deadliest species in the world (HA!). But I am SOOO grateful that I let God's voice be louder than the voice of fear. My time here has exceeded every expectation that I had and I'm constantly blown away. When I reflect on my time here and all that fear could have kept me back from…I've resolved to never let fear control me.

So I ask you again….What's on the other side of your fear?

Here's an example of when the good kind of fear was trying

 to tell me that I was crazy and to back away from the Cheetah…

aha still didn't listen. 

Disclaimer: I am not advocating getting in to cages with wild animals aha please use

wisdom and discernment.

L O V E
Sherina Shantelle