For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind. – 2 Timothy 1:7 (KJV)

If I am going to be honest, fear is something I deal with every day. The fear of success, the fear of failure, the fear of letting go, the fear of holding on too tight, and I am sure the list could go on forever. I know even with this project, I had to deal with fears such as, “Will people like it, or will they think, ‘What in the world is she doing?’” The truth is, fear is always in our lives. It is a spirit that is always available to us; we just have to choose whether or not we plan on entertaining it. No great thing has ever been done in the absence of fear. As a matter of a fact, great achievements can only be done in the face of your fears. Fear is a paralyzing force. It can stop you from trying new things, talking to new people, taking risks, and moving forward. Fear can change who you are; it can make you act differently. Fear can even change your personality. Fear can stop you from seeing and understanding everything that is around you. You lose perspective and begin to focus on the fear and take your eyes off of God. Fear-based thinking can also make it hard for you to see how God is moving, and make it almost impossible for you to see and appreciate what God is doing on your behalf. Fear is like a dog with a lot of bark, but no bite. It makes a lot of noise, but once you decide to act, there is nothing there. A Christian should really only have one kind of fear. The Bible reminds us that the fear of God is the beginning of wisdom (Psalm 111:10). That is the only fear that we should have in our life, because when you have God on your side, what is there to fear? The scripture above is one of many that God has given us to deal with the bully in our lives called fear. Simply put, when fear shows up in your life, you know that it is not something that came from God. The Bible reminds us that we should always pray, and not worry; this is one of the best antidotes for fear: Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. – Phil 4:6 (KJV).