3 Amazing Keys That Will Help You If Fear Is Holding You Back.

Estimated reading time: 11 minutes

What will you do when fear is holding you back? Have you been unable to move forward in life because of fear? Or maybe you are afraid of starting over or even stepping into a new venture because of fear. Have you allowed fear to cripple you to the point of you missing out on the very things God wants you to do or be a part of? Maybe, like Moses, you feel like you don’t know how to articulate yourself and because of this, you run away from speaking engagements or presentations when that’s what God has instructed you to do.

Or maybe God has called you to be in ministry, but you have allowed your past to hold you back because you don’t want people to find out about your past. Whatever the case may be today I want us to look at what we can do to overcome fear and step into what God’s called us to be.

And to help us do this, I want us to look at the story of Jeremiah.
Things bring out 4 types of fear that human beings always struggle with.
Conclusion .

And to help us do this, I want us to look at the story of Jeremiah.

The words of Jeremiah, son of Hilkiah, one of the priests at Anathoth in the territory of Benjamin. The word of the Lord came to him in the thirteenth year of the reign of Josiah’s son of Amon king of Judah, and through the reign of Jehoiakim son of Josiah king of Judah, down to the fifth month of the eleventh year of Zedekiah son of Josiah king of Judah, when the people of Jerusalem went into exile. “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born, I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.” “Alas, Sovereign Lord,” I said, “I do not know how to speak; I am too young.” But the Lord said to me,

“Do not say, ‘I am too young.’ You must go to everyone I send you to and say whatever I command you. Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you and will rescue you,” declares the Lord. Then the Lord reached out his hand and touched my mouth and said to me, “I have put my words in your mouth. See, today I appoint you over nations and kingdoms to uproot and tear down, to destroy and overthrow, to build and to plant.” Jeremiah 1:3‭, ‬5‭-‬10 NIV

Reading this story, one thing is clear, Jeremiah was afraid. He did not want to do what God had told him to do. The interesting thing is that it was not because he did not know God had called him to do it, but because he did not think that he had what it took to do what God had called him to do.

Things bring out 4 types of fear that human beings always struggle with.

The first fear is the fear of rejection

You see, Jeremiah did not doubt that it was God who had spoken to him and given him the mandate. Instead, he was afraid that he would be rejected. And he gave his age as an excuse. Now an even bigger mind-blowing fact was that this excuse was not even valid considering Josiah the king at the time was one of the youngest to ever rule as he became king at 8 years old.

Josiah was eight years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem for thirty-one years. His mother’s name was Jedidah, daughter of Adaiah; she was from Bozkath. He did what was right in the eyes of the Lord and followed completely the ways of his father David, not turning aside to the right or to the left. 2 Kings 22:1‭-‬2 NIV

So what Jeremiah was giving as an excuse was off. I mean, if an 8-year-old could become king, then God would surely be with him. Jeremiah was afraid that they would not take him seriously because of his age. Which boils down to rejection. Are you struggling with this? Is the fear of rejection holding you back?

The second thing is the fear of man.

Jeremiah was afraid of what people would say. He probably thought that because of his age, people would assume he had made up whatever word God had given him to deliver to the people. Maybe, like Jeremiah, you have allowed the fear of man to rule you. Whether it so through their opinions or behavior towards you. Either way, harboring the fear of man inside you will only lead you to live a mediocre life. God has so much in store for you. Don’t allow the status quo or culture to hold you from becoming your best self and stepping into what God has called you to be.

The third thing is the fear of loss and uncertainty

Could it be that Jeremiah was afraid that the cost of obeying God and doing what He had asked him to would be so great? Maybe he thought he would never recover. Are you afraid of you not knowing the outcome of what God is asking you to do, and that is why you have allowed fear to hold you back?

Life is full of uncertainties and whether you follow the sure path or the unfamiliar, you will run into moments of uncertainty. So, let me ask you this: would you rather face uncertainty following God’s path or would you rather face it on your own? Remember, God will sustain what He gives. God sustained the Israelites when they were in the wilderness for 40 years because it was a God-ordained season. Granted, it wasn’t pretty. It was full of uncertainty and shaky moments. But because God was the one leading them, they got to their expected end.

The fourth type of fear is the fear of change

Change can be uncomfortable and as human beings, we often struggle with change. Jeremiah did not want to get out of his comfort zone. And maybe you too prefer living in your comfort zone. After all, you already found a groove of things. But you see, God often disrupts us by taking us out of our comfort zone so that we can experience the growth we need. There is a place God wants to take you but you will only get there when you step out of the boat and agree to walk on water. Higher is waiting. Are you willing to swim in the deep-end?

Now that we have looked at the three types of fear that human beings experience, let us now look at ways you can overcome the fear that is holding you back.

You see fear stems from the uncertainty of the future or an outcome. When you don’t know what the action you are taking today might bring, you will be afraid. And to counter fear, we need to have the right foundation. This looks like you.

Understanding your why.
Understanding who you are
Knowing who guides you. ( where your anchor lies)
Discovering the promises God has spoken over you.

And to start us off, we need to understand where our anchor lies. Let me ask you this: do you know who anchors you? You might say yes, and that’s great, but this leads me to my next question. Do you even know the Character of your Rock? You can only learn to trust God when you truly know who He is. If you want to overcome the fear of rejection, the fear of man, the fear of change and the fear of loss, it is imperative that you know who God is and His character.

God is love. And His being love means He will only want to see you be your best. He will not leave you in mediocrity. That is why He sent Jesus to die on the cross so that you can be reconciled with Him and become who God created you to be. Understanding this will help you know that regardless of rejection, everything will be okay because God is with you and is leading you on the path He has for you. Jesus was not afraid of rejection. He understood that the heart of a human is very fickle. They will love you today and hate you tomorrow.

And when you allow rejection to be what drives you, you will not be stable. After all, human beings always change. The people who praised Jesus and called Him king were the same ones shouting crucify Him. Why would you want people to define you? I know we all want to belong because God created us for relationships.

But you need to get to where you are okay with God moving you when your surrounding does not serve you. Sometimes God will ask you to do something that goes against your tradition. It might look like you leaving your career to step into something new. And because it makes little sense to some people, you will experience rejection. I want to encourage you to keep going, anyway. Follow God and allow Him to lead you on that path He has for you.

Who knows this could be the very path that delivers the same people who reject you. (Case in point Joseph.) Don’t be afraid of rejection. Allow God to anchor you on the truth that He will never leave you nor forsake you. Allow God to show you He is close and near, especially when people around you don’t understand you. Let His love cast out the fear that is holding you back. And become fearless in the pursuit of your purpose. It is better to be rejected now and become fully who God called you to be. Then to be accepted and live in mediocrity. On your deathbed, you will not care about the rejection you faced, you will only care about the impact you made. So let this rule guide you, if it will not matter 5 years from now it is not worth it.

For you to understand God’s character, you need to be rooted in His Word. God will reveal Himself in His Word. And it is the more that you resolve to seek Him, that you will find Him. God promises He will make Himself known to you when you diligently seek Him. Again, for you to really know Him as your anchor, you need to know Him and His character. Trust is built when intimacy is cultivated. So the more you spend time with God, the more you get to know Him. And this will make you bold and fearless therefore, fear will have no hold on you.

Spending time with God will also help you know yourself. Your identity is hidden in Christ. And Jeremiah came to know who he was when He found God. That is why God told him He knew him before He formed him. God knows who you really are. And He ordained you even before you were born. And as you spend time with Him, He will reveal your identity to you. So spend time with God. Don’t be afraid to ask Him who you are. Find scriptures in the Bible that tell you who you are. Remember, your identity is something you discover. You can only discover what you will search for. Instead of seeking your identity in others or culture, why not allow God to reveal your identity to you? He will unfold your identity as you lean in and press on.

Your why will help you gain the confidence to overcome both rejection and the fear of man. What is your God-given purpose? Why did God create you? Find your purpose. And remember your purpose is tied to your identity. And your identity is found in Christ.

Find scriptures that talk about what God has promised you as His Child. You are a child of God because you have a relationship with Jesus. Having this revelation will help you realize that the promises God made to Abraham and his lineage apply to you. You see if you want to overcome fear that is holding you back, you need to know what God says about your future. And what He has in store for you.

A scripture like Jeremiah 29:11 will give you confidence to step into the new because you recognize that as long as God’s got you, your future will always be greater than your past. You will also recognize that God will use His people mightily when they let him. Would you imagine that it was Jeremiah who gave hope to the Israelite as they went into captivity? The same one who did not want to say yes to God when He called him. God can do so much in and through your life if you let Him.

Conclusion .

Write ddown some of the scriptures in the book of Jeremiah that speak to you the most. Then ask yourself what you would have missed out on had Jeremiah said no. Now imagine what you are forfeiting when you allow fear to hold you back. Will you say yes to God today? His love will cast fear out. And Him being your anchor will save you from the fears that are holding you back. Say yes today. Imagine how far you can go when you dissociate from fear and take that move of boldness. Higher is waiting on the other side.