“Courage is just fear that has said its prayers,” (Dorothy Bernard).
We are all afraid of something. What we are afraid of may look different, but the feelings experienced when fear sets in are very similar. It is the rapid heartbeat, the lump in the throat, shaking all over, or the feeling of wanting to run, scream, or hide.
Fear has many different forms, each form causing a different reaction. While the fear of failure may paralyze some people and keep them from pursuing their dream, the fear of dying young or having an early heart attack may spur others on to healthier eating and regular exercise. We have a saying in our house: Courage is not about never being scared, it is about not quitting even while still afraid.
In my opinion, you cannot talk about courage in the midst of fear without including the element of faith. Faith in something that motivates people even more than fear does.
While fear can motivate some people to achieve great things, it causes paralysis in others that keep them from pursuing their destiny. Faith is much more powerful than fear, without the negative consequences. Faith is courage with wings. Faith essentially says that you are relying on Someone who is bigger, stronger, and much more competent than yourself to help you figure out what decision to make, direction to go, or even how to begin to conquer that ever-consuming paralyzing fear that you have struggled with for too long. Faith, like everything else in our lives, is very personal. Therefore, when making the decision to hand your fears over to the One who can handle them by choosing faith, it is amazing to see just how personal the answer is that you will receive.
While both fear and faith can be motivators in our lives, when given the choice, I am going to choose faith. Faith that my God is personal and knows what is best for my life and faith that when I follow His plan instead of mine, it will be better than anything I could have chosen for myself.
Where does someone start who wants that kind of faith? It is really quite simple. God talks about how much easier it is for a child to have faith than adults. This is not because children are dumb; instead, it is because they are more trusting and do not try to handle their problems themselves. God wants us to trust Him and hand our problems over to Him, without taking them back. When I do that, I am always humbled to see just how personally God answers. I know that He is willing to do that for me, and that makes me excited to think about the amazing things He is waiting to do for you!