4 Steps to Overcome Fear and Uncertainty
“The biggest suppressor is fear within you, don’t invite it unnecessarily”― Myra Yadav
Written by Jimmie Burroughs
Step one: Accept fear and uncertainty as a normal part of life.
God instilled fear innately in human life for a specific purpose: That purpose was for protection. Without fear, people would do all kinds of foolish things, which would endanger their life and the lives of others. Fear is only a bad thing when it is misunderstood and uncontrolled. Actually, there is a physiological reason for fear. There is a part of the brain—the amygdala—that acts as a biological alarm system, which sends out a flood of warnings when there is a measure of uncertainty present. Rather than panicking, we use the rest of our brain to test the uncertainty to see if there is room for caution. This is accepting and dealing with fear rationally in order to overcome it.
Uncertainty is a normal part of life: According to the age-old adage, the only things that are certain are death and taxes. That is very true concerning this world; however, there is another certainty that you may not hear much about, and that is everyone, when this life on earth is over, must stand in judgement before Almighty God: Hebrews 9:27 “And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:” I will address this later in this article. The point concerning uncertainty is to expect it, accept it, and plan for it by reducing its influence on your life. For example, if you are an investor, plan your portfolio to reduce the possibility of loss due to the uncertainty of the stock market. To account for the uncertainty of employment, have a financial cushion to carry you over in case you are laid off, etc.
Step two: Overcome fear through knowledge and action.
Recently, a pastor said, “God is more powerful than the Coronavirus.” A few days later he died from Coronavirus. I agree with what he said; God is certainly more powerful than anything else. However, I don’t know in what context he stated it, and that makes all the difference in the world. God expects us to be active and not passive in our journey through life; that includes continuing to gain knowledge and continue to take appropriate action. That is why I state that overcoming Fear through knowledge and action is the best way to overcome it. There is a saying that I heard many years ago that goes like this: “Work like it all depends on you and trust like it all depends on God.” This article is all about learning what fear is, and then facing up to it and taking the appropriate action to overcome it while fully relying on God.
Many of us have heard the famous quote made by Franklin D Roosevelt in his 1932 inaugural speech, “…The only thing we have to fear is fear itself.” I have often wondered what exactly Roosevelt meant, that is until I took the time to read it in the full context. Here are FDR’s words, in context, from his 1932 inaugural speech, excerpted from the original speech: “This is preeminently the time to speak the truth, the whole truth, frankly and boldly. Nor need we shrink from honestly facing conditions in our country today. This great Nation will endure as it has endured, will revive and will prosper. So, first of all, let me assert my firm belief that the only thing we have to fear is fear itself—nameless, unreasoning, unjustified terror which paralyzes needed efforts to convert retreat into advance.” What a timely message for us today as we battle Coronavirus. It is fear itself, which can cause us the greatest problems.
Keep in mind that this was 1932 and the collapse of the stock market was 1929, so the country was in a time of high uncertainty. It was in the greatest depression of this country’s history before or since. Roosevelt realized that fear itself was the greatest enemy, and it alone could slow the progress into recovery. While FDR had no solution to the problem at the time, he wanted to reassure the people that this is a great nation, and it was strong and determined and that things were going to be all right.
Fear can stifle us, paralyze us and keep us from making wise decisions and taking appropriate action. Only when we are able to overcome fear can we move forward. “The only thing to fear is fear itself” addresses the harm that fear can bring to progress. Irrational fear can cause harmful actions; it can wreck the possibility of recovery from a bad experience. Therefore, I think FDR was telling the people not to let fear rob them of the possibilities of a new tomorrow with hope, success, and prosperity.
We are not sure yet what our new tomorrow might bring; there is the possibility that it can bring hope, success and prosperity like we have never known before. Like those in the great depression, we may not be able, presently, to imagine a time like that in the future. If in 1932 they could have seen the future of America, they would have had an entirely different outlook. They would have been excited about what lay ahead, which was some of the most prosperous years in the history of the country. True, there would also come more uncertainty brought about by future wars. Nevertheless, overall, from 1932 until the present, we have been greatly blessed in this great county of America.
Step three: Understand the three things that keep you from overcoming fear.
First, Not understanding fear: Let us begin with a definition of fear: “To be afraid or apprehensive.” By the way, fear is currently in the top 30% of lookups on Merriam-Webster.com, so apparently, many folks are dealing with it and trying to understand it. The best way to understand fear is to understand why there is fear in the first place. There is nothing wrong in having fear; it only becomes harmful to us when it is misused and misunderstood. Fear is a God given drive; it is one of a bundle of human drives. Some of the most common and misused drives are the fear drive, the anger drive, the sex drive and the hunger drive.
As I said earlier, the purpose of the fear drive is for protection. If there were no fear drive at all, it would remove all precaution and create havoc in our lives; it would put us in constant danger of harm. For example, alcohol represses the fear drive and causes someone to take unnecessary risks, like driving at a high rate of speed on dangerous and treacherous roads. This results in them endangering themselves and others of death or great harm. Under the same conditions, a sober mind and a healthy and active fear drive would be warning us that an accident was highly possible that could result in death or serious injury. People do not always heed their fear drive when they should but instead continue to take foolish, unnecessary risks and sometimes pay dearly for it.
When fear is uncontrolled, it may result in causing one to be fearful to ride in a car because of the danger it could impose. That is an instance when the fear drive is being used incorrectly. The proper use of the fear drive is letting it motivate us to exercise safety, in the example of driving, to observe the traffic laws, and to drive careful, therefore, making the possibility of an accident far less probable. Amidst the coronavirus, it means following the safety guidelines rather than panicking. By the way, your chance of contacting the virus is far less than contacting cancer. Chances of cancer are one in four. In my state of Tennessee, the chance of contacting coronavirus, presently, is one in over fourteen hundred. I don’t mean to downplay the need of being cautious concerning Coronavirus, only to be rational concerning it.
If we allow the fear of what could happen, presently or in the near future, dominate our thinking, we will paralyze ourselves for doing that which is in our best interest. For example, if we have such a great fear of flying that we refuse to fly under any conditions, we could paralyze ourselves and miss something needful and rewarding in our lives. Flying can enhance our lives; for instance, a very rewarding job sometimes requires some travel by air, or a trip to a beautiful and exotic place requires flying. My lifelong dream was to visit the Holy land, Israel. I was not excited by such a long trip by air, but if I was to fulfill my dream, it was necessary, so in January of this year my wife and I took the plunge and made the trip. It was the trip of a lifetime. Fear of flying could have robbed us of that joy if we had permitted it. Excessive fear crosses over the line and becomes phobia driven, cheating people out of experiencing some of the greatest and most rewarding experiences of life.
Second, Not discerning the difference between rational and irrational fear: Many things cause us to be fearful and worried, even things out of our control, or things that are improbable of happening. It is a matter of fact that about 95% of the things, which the average person is fearful of, or worry about, never happen. You may be thinking, well how about the other 5%? Your fear or worry will not keep them from happening; however, most of the time they can be dealt with when our mind is rationally centered on them or accepted when there is no practical solution.
There is always a list of catastrophic things that could happen at any given moment, but are improbable to happen at all, at least in our lifetime. For example, there is a huge volcano beneath the surface of Yellowstone National Park that could blow at any time. If it did, it would wipe out two thirds of the United States. Should the fear of that happening cause me to live only on the East Coast? No, that is acting irrationally.
There is a great difference in irrational fear and rational fear. Rational fear is a protective device that warns us of a possible impending danger, while irrational fear is an unwarranted and unneeded fear. I have a friend who was accosted on a parking lot. A man tried to drag her into a van, but she put up such a fight that he gave up and sped away. Because of that experience, she is now very cautious about being on a parking lot alone under certain conditions. Is she right? Yes, she is because it is a rational fear based on experience; she is using the fear drive as intended, as a precaution about certain actions, which could be dangerous. Darkened parking lots have been the scene for a lot of crime and especially against women who are alone.
Strangely, the #1 irrational fear is the fear of public speaking. I can attest to that since I have been a public speaker for many years. I might add that I’ve never fully been able to lose that initial fear of speaking completely. Nevertheless, I have not allowed it to keep me from doing that which I strongly desire to do. It actually has been a help because it makes me want to be fully prepared when I speak. I know from experience that the fear will go away within the first 60 seconds, and then I am able to move right along in complete confidence.
I believe that the best rule of thumb in dealing with fear is to think about what you are fearful of, and determine if you are being rational about it or not. Remember that it is an irrational fear that is harmful and not rational fear. Determine which it is. If it is an irrational fear, take the appropriate action to overcome it and avoid letting it keep you from doing those things you desire to do.
Third, Not taking the appropriate action to overcome fear: As I mentioned above, sometimes fears are phobia driven. If this is the case, the fear can be overcome, but it may require a great deal of effort. For example, if I experience agoraphobia, fear of heights, I need to immerse myself in situations to prove to myself that I refuse to be a prisoner of that irrational fear. If I have a fear of flying, I need to fly. If I have a fear of dogs, I need to be around dogs, etc. Force yourself to confront your irrational fear head on and conquer it. The point I am making is that taking the appropriate action to overcome fear is the only way of ever freeing yourself of it. The other alternative is allowing it to control your life.
I remember when I was learning to go over a water ski jump. I went over several times and fell, which was not pleasant at all. Fear would have told me to quit, but I was determined to succeed, so I continued and finally learned to do it. There was actually an element of danger. This ski jump was on the Niagara River above Niagara Falls. The water was very swift, since it flows over the 190-foot drop of the falls, just a few miles downstream. Many accidents have occurred in the past on this river and resulted in people going over the falls. A young man lost his life on this particular jump; it took several hours for his body to be recovered below the falls. The question is, in my case, was the satisfaction worth the risk? That is another thing to consider about the things we choose to do. I was only 22 at the time, and to me it was worth the risk, but today I have more knowledge and am better able to rationalize danger, so now it would not be worth the risk. The satisfaction of climbing to the top of Mt. Everest would not be worth the risk to me, where it would be to someone else. Life has many risks, so it is necessary to evaluate and determine what level of risk you are comfortable with in order to accomplish what you want.
The unhealthy way of dealing with fear is letting it drive your life, never being willing to take any risk, and letting it keep you from living your life and doing the things you enjoy; on the other extreme is taking all sort of risks that are not worth it, which put you in real, unnecessary danger. We need to follow FDR’s advice to face our fears and not let them destroy our hopes of the future but also with a measure of caution. It is easier just to run from fears or hide behind them and forfeit a lot of the enjoyment in life. Especially, we need to avoid the unneeded worry and anxiety connected to fear. One of the greatest regrets among those coming to the end of life was not being willing to take more risks to accomplish the things important to them.
Step four: Put your faith and trust in God to watch over and to protect you.
This is God’s promise to those who believe and trust in Him: Isaiah 41:10 – “So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”
King David placed his trust in the lord when he was faced with fearful circumstances and uncertainty: Psalm 121:4-7 – “I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help. My help cometh from the LORD, which made heaven and earth. He will not suffer thy foot to be moved: he that keepeth thee will not slumber. Behold, he that keepeth Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep. The LORD is thy keeper: the LORD is thy shade upon thy right hand. The sun shall not smite thee by day, nor the moon by night. The LORD shall preserve thee from all evil: he shall preserve thy soul.”
Have you placed your faith and trust in God in these troublesome times? Many in this life may not realize the importance of it or are not willing to humble themselves and accept Christ, but there will be a time when it is too late, that all will: Romans 14:11- “For it is written, As I live, saith the LORD, every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God.” Why put it off any longer or wait to confess God when there is no hope? You can do it today while you still have life. You have nothing to lose and everything to gain. CLICK HERE for step by step instructions.
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About the author: Jimmie Burroughs is a motivational speaker and author who has been involved in teaching Christian Personal Development for more than 30 years. There are hundreds of articles to help you, in your personal growth, on this website: (Website Contents)