Joyce Meyer

I've never been a slave, and I've never been caught between an army and the ocean, but I do know what it's like to be afraid. We all do.

So I can relate to the Israelites in some ways. When they were in bondage in Egypt, they were miserable and cried out for deliverance. Then, when deliverance came, they quicklydecided this wasn't comfortable either and let their fear sway them to believe going back to slavery would actually be better than facing their fear and moving forward. Sounds crazy, right?

Now, to be fair, they were in a pretty tight spot, facing the Red Sea with an army of angry Egyptians bearing down on them from behind. But was the "risk" of trusting God and stepping into the waters before them really more daunting than giving up, surrendering to Pharaoh and going back to total bondage?

Let's make this personal. Are you living with freedom to be who God really created you to be? Are you doing everything that's in your heart for this season of your life? Is anything holding you back because you're afraid to let go of it and move forward without knowing for sure what will replace it or if the goal you have in mind can be achieved? If so, you are doing what the Israelites did, in a sense. You're settling for the bondage of fear and what's familiar, rather than following God completely into the fulfillment of His plans and purposes for your life today.

It's a hard statement. I almost deleted it. But I believe in my heart it's all too true. And Joyce's article this week confirms it. We need to decide we won't settle anymore. We need to confront our fears and move forward boldly and courageously as the Lord leads us. When we do, we will experience a newfound freedom we didn't even realize was possible! Selah… susan

Do you ever feel fear? We all do at one time or another. Even Christians feel fear at times. And that feeling is never going to go away permanently. The Bible says to "fear not," but this doesn't mean you should never feel scared. It means when you do feel fear, keep going forward and do what you are supposed to do. Or as I like to say, do it afraid.

It was a great revelation to me when I realized that I couldn't control the feeling of fear but I could keep it from controlling me. In those difficult moments in life when there are no answers, or when unexpected change occurs-whatever the situation, I've learned to not live by my feelings and instead face the fear head on. Even when I'm "shaking in my boots."

There are times when you have to stand your ground and speak God's Word to get the courage you need. For example, Romans 8:31 (NKJV) says, "If God is for us, who can be against us?" And Psalm 27:1 reminds me that if God is on my side, whom shall I fear?

Sometimes you must suffer through something to defeat your fear of it. For example, in the early part of my ministry I had to suffer the loss of reputation. Back then, many thought women shouldn't teach and preach, and that's what God called me to do. And when I stepped out in obedience to God to do it, it wasn't easy.

I was asked to leave my church. I lost friends. And some people just didn't understand.

So I had to confront those early fears of what others thought of me and a fear of being different. Thank God, He helped me press through-because if I had chosen to run from those situations, I wouldn't be here today.

The Israelites are also a good example of people who had to face their fears. In the Old Testament, God brought them out of a terrible life of slavery to take them to the Promised Land, but they were then confronted with a different situation that was equally unpleasant. They ended up facing the Red Sea in front of them and Pharaoh's army behind them. When the Israelites saw their dilemma, they actually desired to go back to their former life of slavery instead of confronting the unknown ahead of them. They preferred going back to their former life even though it was miserable. All because of fear.

Just picture their situation: the Red Sea in front of them and the Egyptian army behind them. What are they going to do?

Moses told the Israelites in Exodus 14:13 (AMP), "Fear not; stand still (firm, confident, undismayed) and see the salvation of the Lord which He will work for you today. For the Egyptians you have seen today you shall never see again."

The word fear means "to run or to take flight." So when we give in to fear we always run away from something that we should be confronting. God wanted the Israelites to go forward into the unknown. He wanted them to be so fed up with bondage, they would be willing to risk drowning instead of going back to slavery. God wanted them to be bold and courageous. And He wants you to be bold and courageous too.

Notice how the Lord said "stand still." That's interesting, because when the emotion of fear has hold of us and our minds are thinking one crazy thing after another, the first thing we need to do is get still. Get out of the emotion, out of our own head, and check with our heart and ask, "What is God saying in this situation?"

Maybe you are in this position right now and you feel like you are between a rock and a hard place. It's like you are between the Egyptian army and the Red Sea and all of your emotions are going haywire. You may feel tempted to call your friends and ask them what you should do. Don't do that. Start by going to God first and waiting on Him.

I encourage you today to stand still, get wisdom and direction from God and His Word, and then do what you believe God is telling you to do. Ask Him for courage. Then you will see the Lord make a way for you to push past your fear and reach the promised land He has ready for you.