I will make a bold statement: Most people fear something or someone.
"Fear influences human behaviour in many ways, and it's probably no exaggeration to say that it is at the root of most human problems," says Roy Lawrence, author of How To Pray When Life Hurts.
Can God and prayer help? Most definitely, says Lawrence. As a British pastor, he has helped many deal with their fears through healing prayer over the years.
I have had fears over my long life - among them fear of people, fear of the future, fear of failure. With experience and God's help, I am better able to deal with fear than I once was.
I have never been crippled with fear as some people have. But Lawrence says that people severely affected by fear have one advantage over the rest of us - they're willing to admit they have a problem.
"Because they acknowledge their problem in a straightforward way, they have already taken the first steps along the road that can lead to healing," the author writes.
Many people do the opposite. They try to hide their fears from others through various defence mechanisms. They may become attention-seekers, or appear super-confident, or go into a shell and pretend indifference, or descend into fantasy. And there are many other schemes we use.
After admitting our insecurities, Lawrence says that "we can then go to our Lord and avail ourselves of his healing resources."
There, we will find that Jesus truly understands our anxiety. After all, he called out to the Father on the cross that he felt forsaken, alone in the face of a horrible death.
"He assures us that we are loved by God and that perfect love casts out all fear (1 John 4:18)," Lawrence says.
He continues: "How then do you pray when you are anxious and fearful? You just meet Jesus and allow him to surround you with his own special love - and the power of that love cannot be overestimated."
Lawrence says that a medical doctor named Meryl was so emotionally afraid that she could no longer work. Doctors felt she was incurable.
A Christian friend had searched the Bible and presented Meryl with a sheet of 22 verses about fear and God's love and asked her to read through them prayerfully morning and evening till they made a difference.
Meryl agreed and then a "slow-motion miracle" began to unfold. In six months, she was completely healed.
It would take too much space to include all those passages in this blog entry, but anyone interested can search a Bible concordance and find verses speaking about God's love and care for his fearful creatures.
"If we are willing to be loved," says Lawrence, "God is willing to love us, and to go on and on loving until love's healing work is done."
Once healed, we can help others who are plagued with fear.
"Fear influences human behaviour in many ways, and it's probably no exaggeration to say that it is at the root of most human problems," says Roy Lawrence, author of How To Pray When Life Hurts.
Can God and prayer help? Most definitely, says Lawrence. As a British pastor, he has helped many deal with their fears through healing prayer over the years.
I have had fears over my long life - among them fear of people, fear of the future, fear of failure. With experience and God's help, I am better able to deal with fear than I once was.
I have never been crippled with fear as some people have. But Lawrence says that people severely affected by fear have one advantage over the rest of us - they're willing to admit they have a problem.
"Because they acknowledge their problem in a straightforward way, they have already taken the first steps along the road that can lead to healing," the author writes.
Many people do the opposite. They try to hide their fears from others through various defence mechanisms. They may become attention-seekers, or appear super-confident, or go into a shell and pretend indifference, or descend into fantasy. And there are many other schemes we use.
After admitting our insecurities, Lawrence says that "we can then go to our Lord and avail ourselves of his healing resources."
There, we will find that Jesus truly understands our anxiety. After all, he called out to the Father on the cross that he felt forsaken, alone in the face of a horrible death.
"He assures us that we are loved by God and that perfect love casts out all fear (1 John 4:18)," Lawrence says.
He continues: "How then do you pray when you are anxious and fearful? You just meet Jesus and allow him to surround you with his own special love - and the power of that love cannot be overestimated."
Lawrence says that a medical doctor named Meryl was so emotionally afraid that she could no longer work. Doctors felt she was incurable.
A Christian friend had searched the Bible and presented Meryl with a sheet of 22 verses about fear and God's love and asked her to read through them prayerfully morning and evening till they made a difference.
Meryl agreed and then a "slow-motion miracle" began to unfold. In six months, she was completely healed.
It would take too much space to include all those passages in this blog entry, but anyone interested can search a Bible concordance and find verses speaking about God's love and care for his fearful creatures.
"If we are willing to be loved," says Lawrence, "God is willing to love us, and to go on and on loving until love's healing work is done."
Once healed, we can help others who are plagued with fear.
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