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Y’all know that mom who goes through old photos and falls into an emotional state of nostalgia… Yes, this is she and the one below, wrecked me .

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It was my first night home from the hospital and I was still sporting my wristband. This spot right here, on the warmer upper part of my chest, was my kids’ favorite place to be when they were babies. The closeness, warmth, love and security was something they could sense in womb and their senses seemed to have heightened after birth. They were close to mom again. It was a safe place.

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A safe place that our youngest daughter, Nadia, might not have experienced if my husband and I had allowed our fears to change her existence in our destiny. You know.. those little voices that goes against what God has already worked out like, “How can we afford another child? What if you get sick again after the birth? How will we meet the needs of every child?” Our list of concerns that fed our anxiety and doubt was continuously growing.

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The theme at our church last month was “No Fear November” . Last Sunday, I taught the final lesson on fear to the children. I briefly mentioned a few fears I have just because I’m a mom. The sad reality is that the number of fears have grown as the world becomes even more uncertain. There are some days when I want to just keep them in the house nestled in my arms– away from the world and the overwhelming madness of it all.

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But…If I hold myself and my children hostage in our comfort zone because of my fears, what would that say about my faith and trust in God. How do we learn to navigate or appreciate the world our Father created if we’re too afraid to explore it?How do we love others if we don’t go out to be around others? How can we learn to love our neighbor as ourselves if we never see or spend time with them? Now don’t get me wrong, some people are better loved from a reasonable distance and I’m not saying to love everyone the same. My point is that we must face and get past the fears that prevent us from doing God’s will. We risk sacrificing the great things. God has for us when we find our safe place in our fears.

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Fear and anxiety will find it’s way into our lives in many ways. Here are a few most common:

New opportunities

Deeper relationships

New places

Challenges

Losing or failing

Possibilities of danger

Tragedy

The bible tells us that there is no fear in love so we must ask ourselves do we want the next generation to inherit our fears or our faith and ability to love?

One truth I hold onto is that the spirit of fear did not come from our heavenly Father (2 Timothy 1:7) and because we’re made in God’s image and likeness we don’t have to let our fears control us. His perfect love rids our fears (1 John 4:18). He’s capable of giving us peace in the midst of our greatest fears (Isaiah 26:3).

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I kindly urge you to trust and believe that God wouldn’t take you into the deep if His grace couldn’t keep you afloat. Know that in the event of the inevitable, we serve a God who’s with us and orchestrating a way for our situations (past and present) to work out for our good (Romans 8:28). You see, an abundant life is about trusting God through the eb and flow, the blessings and lessons, while being grateful for it all.

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Jesus doesn’t want our fears to rule us. He wants us to face them with the strength and courage our Father has already given us. The bible says that the name of the Lord is a fortified tower and that righteous run to it and are safe (Proverbs 18:10). As, believers, we cannot allow our fears to keep us from living a life of abundance in Jesus. We must continue to trust God in every season of our life’s journey because our safe place isn’t found where we feel comfortable and secure in life, but in who we trust.