Do Not Fear
Well hello everyone! It has been quite some time since I last wrote. I feel like I am always saying that, haha!! Life gets busy and my time to blog gets a little limited. And to be honest, it has been a really rough couple of months and so I don’t tend to want to write as much. But during that time “off” from writing I am learning a lot and so then I end up having more to write about! So really, the hard times are something to be thankful for because they keep me stretching and growing and learning … which gives me endless things to write about! ;) With that being said, let's dive into the topic of today’s blog … “do not fear”.
We really are living in such heavy, unprecedented, unpredictable, scary times. With all that is going on in the world it is easy to become scared. The other week I was overcome with fear because of what was happening in the world and I found myself trying to go to food to help comfort myself from that fear. But that’s not new for me. I have always battled fear since I was a little girl. So I know for a fact that fear is directly linked to our eating disorders and addictions … and it’s not just me that this applies to. But before we go any further, I want to show you how many times God tells us not to fear.
I know that God tells us quite a lot not to fear in the Bible, but I wasn’t sure exactly how many times He says it in the Bible and so I googled it … here's what I found.
“‘Fear not!’ is the most repeated command in the Bible. In fact, it's been said that there are 365 '‘Fear nots” in the Bible — one “Fear not” for every day of the year!”
Now, this is from google so I’m not 100% sure how accurate this is … but nonetheless … that is a lot of times God tells us not to fear. I started thinking about it more because of what had happened the other week with my latest battle with fear.
Being afraid is so common and it’s so common that I think we aren't even aware of just how much we are faced with fear every day. It can come in all kinds of different forms like being afraid with what’s going on in the world, being afraid of something you have to do at work, being afraid of what others think of you, being afraid you are disappointing your loved ones, being afraid of dying, being afraid of germs, being afraid of failing, being afraid of food, being afraid of a certain outcome for whatever … the list could go on and on and on.
God had to give us the command to “fear not” because he knows how easy it is for us to be afraid and how much Satan will try to destroy us by the simple tactic of fear. Think about it, fear is behind every addiction, every mental disorder, every eating disorder … all of them. Fear is one of the biggest engines that drives our addictions and disorders. Here’s a list of reasons driven by fear that may have caused us to fall into our addictions/disorders in the first place.
Afraid of not being enough
Afraid of failing
Afraid of who you are or who you might be
Afraid of the unknown
Afraid of the past, present and future
These are common but they are at the root of every addiction/disorder we fight. If you are someone who has struggled with an addiction/disorder think back as to when you first realized you were stuck in an addiction/disorder and then think back to some of the root issues of why you fell into that addiction/disorder.
See, when you are afraid … you either fight or fall. Yep, fight or fall. You either fight back and don’t give in or you fall into coping, comforting, controlling or numbing yourself.
Still to this day, there are some days when I am feeling good and strong, on guard and ready to fight back. Other days I am weak and fall into fear. For me Satan tempts me with the unknown, like he did the other week. I become afraid of what is to come and so then I try to control something and a lot of times that is food. Sometimes he gets me with the fear of the future, or the fear that someone might die, the fear of performing or that I might be fatally ill and countless others. But whenever I start to fear I find myself looking to food to control and comfort me. That’s what fear does.
When I was anorexic and I was fearful I would restrict food to control it. Then when I was bulimic I went to food to comfort me and numb my fear. Same thing, just a different “coat” … a different way of acting out the same thing. Satan is not clever or original. Once I started clueing into his same old tactics it became easier to see the fight. It was still hard (and still is!) fighting back … but it was like getting an inside look into his playbook. And once I saw it, it helped me in how I fought through my eating disorders.
Like I said, he still tries his same old ways to get me off track even to this day! But it's so much less because I now have years of fighting back.
It is just so incredibly helpful and beneficial when we can see what and how we fall into our addictions/disorders. If we never see it, then we don’t know what to fight and we end up just spiraling downward, out of control because we don’t know how we slipped in the first place.
The cool thing is that God is stronger and greater and the Victor … He has already won!! He has given us the strength to stand and fight back and to win! How cool is that! He is the One who knows the future, and He is the One who knows my path and my journey. I do not need to be afraid because He is my Father who watches over me, cares for me and even sings over me! So I can rest in Him … completely. The hard part is just if I will trust Him and rest in His strong embrace.
I never regret trusting and resting in Him but I always regret running away from Him in fear.
The problem is, I’m a sinner and I mess up. I am weak … but! … He is strong! So here are a couple of my favorite verses for when I am afraid:
“Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”
Isaiah 41:10
“Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”
Joshua 1:9
“Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
Philippians 4:6-7
“For God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.”
2 Timothy 1:7
“Be strong and courageous. Do not fear or be in dread of them, for it is the Lordyour God who goes with you. He will not leave you or forsake you.”
Deuteronomy 31:6
I know these are common Bible verses so I encourage you to really read them and don’t just quote them because you have heard them so many times. The Truth of these verses still stands, so stand on them and claim them when you are afraid. These verses have encouraged me so much … I know for a fact you can stand on these verses and claim them for when you're afraid.
I really hope this has been encouraging and maybe even enlightening as to what got you into the addiction/disorder you are in. But please take courage and don’t lose heart, you are not alone in this fight. Fear is something I face and fight all the time. I’m not perfect at it but being aware of how much fear drove my life really helped me to know how to fight it and it was a huge element to my recovery during my eating disorders.
I want to encourage you to think back if you are someone who has struggled with addiction/disorders and see what happened to get you to where you are today. I bet you, one of the roots is fear. Let me know what it is you fear and how fear affects you in the comments below.
As always, thank you for taking your time to even read my blog, I truly hope this encourages you!! Now lets go about our day living in freedom and peace, enjoying this beautiful season of Fall!!
~ Natalie