Fear has whispered a story to you that maybe you have believed. When you believe things never work out for you, when you believe this too will all fall apart, when you believe you will never be good enough, you have no other option but to operate from that belief. You present yourself to the world as a person operating from their beliefs. If you walk into a job interview believing you would never be good enough for the job, that’s what they will see … a person not good enough for the job. It’s not their fault, it’s what you showed them. If you look in the mirror believing you can never change, your mind defeats the miraculous potential of your body before it even has a chance. Power is sacrificed, strength is surrendered, and change is forfeited, all because of the story fear whispered to you, and you believed it to be your truth. What story has fear whispered to you? What scenario of your future has it painted in it’s colors of dark gray and matte black? What light has it drown out? What possibilities has it darkened and tucked away in corners? Will you allow this to continue? Will you, the priceless, precious, chosen, set apart, fully equipped, dearly loved, fully forgiven, redeemed, destined, purpose filled daughter of the Almighty … will you allow this treacherous thievery of your truth to continue? 1 John 4:18 tells us “perfect love casts out fear.” That perfect love is only Jesus Christ. Fear will whisper it’s ridiculous stories, fear will render you incapable, fear will pick you apart piece by piece, fear will turn every blessing into a burden, fear will paint every possibility as a threat, and that fear can only be cast out by the perfect love of Jesus. Whatever the stories of fear are in your life, your answer is Jesus. Fear tells me I’m a fraud, an imposter, a fake facade that will fall one day to nothing but shame and embarrassment. Fear tells me my beautiful young daughter will never return to the love of her family. Fear tells me all that is good right now is withering away to a scary future of loss, grief and hardship. Fear tells me I can’t keep going. Fear tells me I will fail again, and this time that failure will be fatal. I know it’s stories well. I’ve rehearsed them in my mind, they’ve filled my dreams as I sleep, I’ve seen them all play out. How about you? What are the stories of fear whispered to you? Have some of those stories turned into realities even because you have operated from that place of fear for years? Oh, but there’s a song called “Fear Is a Liar” by Zach Williams that says it so well: Fear, he is a liarHe will take your breathStop you in your stepsFear, he is a liarHe will rob your restSteal your happinessCast your fear in the fireCause fear, he is a liar Ahhhhh, why cast your fear in the fire? Because the fiery pits of hell is where it came from in the first place. Send that fear back to its Daddy. Perfect love removes that fear, and you are the direct, intentional and personal recipient of that perfect love through Jesus. When that fear comes creeping in again, the fear that speaks so intimately about your wounds and dark spots, you remember this truth … the truth of Romans 8:31 “If God is for us, who can be against us?” Who can stand against God? Who can defeat his power? Who can stop his will? Who can possibly hold back his movement when he has decided to move? NO ONE and NO THING. But, what if God isn’t for you? I know that’s what you’re questioning.