The Spiritual Fear Of Self: Part Three
There are so many fears in the world today. One of the biggest fears that can creep into the Church and cause chaos is the Spiritual fear of self. Being afraid of yourself, doesn’t seem like it can actually be a fear, and yet, it’s one that causes issues in the Church as a whole. This week we are covering the third Spiritual Fear in our four week series. If you want to catch up with the first; click HERE. If you want to check out the second in the series; click HERE. So if you find yourself wondering if a fear of self is one that you or your congregation are struggling with, then continue reading on.
Fear Of Self:
Bible Verse: Luke 9:23 - “He said to all, “If anyone desires to come after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me.”
We all have things about ourselves that we struggle with. For some they might not like their appearance, and others it might be something about their personality. When we start to focus on the things that we don’t like about ourselves, then it can morph into a fear of self doubt. This fear of self doubt can become a dangerous one when it seeps into our Spiritual lives. Having a fear of our lack of Bible knowledge can keep us sharing the gospel with our co-workers. A fear of not saying the right words in a prayer (because we don’t say personal prayers often), can lead to us not learning how to truly talk with God. A fear of not knowing what we truly believe, will lead to us only having the faith of our parents or preacher, without ever making the faith they have become YOUR faith. All of these different types of fears have one thing in common - SELF! We are often SO worried about ourselves, that it come through in our faith. The fear of self is one that is centered around what we think we should or should not be doing. Have you ever heard someone say, “I’m not talented at that, so I’ll let the other ladies handle that.” That’s the fear of self! Have you ever heard some say, “I don’t have enough Bible knowledge to teach the gospel, that’s the preacher’s job.” That’s the fear of self! Or have you ever heard someone say, “I’m too busy with work right now to make it to that church event, maybe another time.” That’s also the fear of self. We use ourselves as the excuse for why we aren’t prioritizing (examples: growing in our knowledge, building relationships with others, teaching someone about Jesus, or to not sign up to help at an event at church). When we don’t put our faith first in our lives, then something else takes its place — SELF! We cannot let the fears that we have about our insecurities, lack of knowledge, or how comfortable we are when talking to others get in the way of living how God calls us to live. We must stop making ourselves the excuse, because when we let that become a fear, we will miss out on true growth with our Church Family and with God!
Ideas for Fears Holding Us Back:
Spend more time with God this week. The more you learn about Him, the more time you will want to spend in His presence.
Prepare yourself with the Gospel message, the more you are prepared, then the more that fear of self doubt won’t affect you. (click HERE to find out about how we teach others about God).
Set aside time each week to serve others. When you get use to getting out of your comfort zone, then the more chance of you doing it again in the future.
Pray for God to help you get over the self-doubts that you have in your life. Only through God and working towards a relationship with Him, can we let our own self-doubts go.
Write out our Bible verse of the week (listed above) on several post-it notes and place them all over your house. When you read it throughout the week you will then be given a reminder to work on putting God and others first.
Spend each Sunday afternoon, reflecting over your previous week. Think of the ways you succeeded in getting over your fear of self, but also think of the ways that you gave into the fear. List out all of the ways in a journal. Keep track of your growth.
Also use the journal used for self tracking above, as a place to set some goals for growth each week. Decide the areas that you need to grow in, and then plan goals around that (examples: spending more time in prayer, serving others more, talking to more people at your congregation).
Find a fellow Church member that you can talk with about all of the insecurities holding you back. You can even ask them to help hold you more accountable.
Conclusion:
Don’t be afraid to admit to any of the fears that we are covering in this series. If you realize that you struggle with letting yourself get in your own way of growth in your relationship with God, then make plans to get better. We cannot truly grow until we openly look at ourselves, then make changes to being who God calls us to be. Pray for strength, make the plans for growth, and follow through! God will be there to help you through.
About the Author: My name is Katie, and I’m a Church of Christ Preacher’s wife in Kentucky. I am also a proud homeschool mom to two brilliant boys. I love to craft, and make and bind my own notebooks. I also make a weekly podcast show called “Just Bible No Fluff",” where I skip all of fluffy extras and hop right into a short yet impactful exegetical study of the scripture. My mission and vision in life is this: “To empower women Spiritually by enhancing their skills in deep Bible study, equipping them to effectively teach the Gospel to others, and guiding them in cultivating Spiritual growth beyond the Church building.”