Individuals, couples, marriages, family, children... don't we all struggle with some form of fear as human beings.

I do.

I fight feelings of invalidation, unworthiness and frustration of not being enough, that creates fear in me. I cringe at the weakness that I perceive the world thinks of what this must mean. I struggle with how high or low fear drives me. This roller coaster and flood of emotions that seems to dictate my sense of....

who I am… what I do… how I live.

We have so many different words for FEAR.

Scared, scary, anxious, afraid, frightening… or we describe what fear does to our bodies when we are fearful….and the list goes on…

…lately I’m finding it’s been a battle to focus on what to resist when it comes to the idea of fear. Too many inputs? too much energy flowing in or out, a focus on the lack of something rather than a satisfaction and a rest of what has been provided? It’s all really defeating…

I can point to the thoughts I have about what the sources of fear might be, but when I am in the midst of it, the sensations and power of fear is so mind numbing. It seems to build on itself and won’t let the tentacles that are reaching deep within me release or be cut off. Some of you would delight in purposely creating the fear sensation within you by running from roller coaster to roller coaster. Others don’t need Six Flags. You just have to close your eyes and remember something in your past.

What is the thinking or belief YOU can’t take anymore? What is the FEAR that is DRIVING YOU?

Look at your behaviors…

Are you running yourself into the ground? - burnout?? Based on a self driving force within?

“I’ll show you!”

“No one is ever going to do that to me, again.”

“I will only be accepted if…”

Are you shutting people out? - loneliness? shame?

“No one will understand!”

“I am just an expletive anyway so why would someone care?”

“what happened won’t ever change so, how could I ever be happy?”

focusing on the negative? - lies?

“No, really!!! I am an expletive!!! Why should you care…”

“I am so unworthy since that happened… No one will ever…“

“I must be destined to …”

forgotten God?

“He wasn’t there when XYZ happened so why should I ever want to believe in something that has no real tangible evidence that He can keep me from harm or pain…”

I admittedly am not always a fan of glitz and glamour, of things that are online, but in portions of this message by Craig Groeschel, Craig takes a moment to break through the exhaustion and remind us through the life of the story of Elijah who was running from Jezebel a few things about God and what he does when life seems so fearful and overwhelming.

Takeaways from what I heard from the message that Craig presented on 1 Kings 19:11-13 were:

• What Elijah was focusing on or expected wasn’t the key to knowing peace.

• Elijah was focused on his own perspective about what was needing to be changed.

• God knew he needed different… God knew Elijah needed God’s presence in a very different form than what Elijah was seeking and in a time and moment of healing God showed up… as a whisper.

Elijah was needing the understanding of who God is in the midst of the moment of struggle. Elijah also needed to understand that he had been running from a real and present danger, but that God had a plan.

The message by Craig reminded me that God is still who He says He is when I am alone and afraid and I don’t know what to do. The message reminded me that the most powerful being in the universe wants to know and have a daily moment by moment connection with me. And it reminded me that the yelling, growling voice of the insecurities and losses I have recently gone through, or the demands of this world and the ruler of it are nothing compared to the majesty and presence of the Almighty God of the Universe.

So… what will you choose?

To be DRIVEN by the cacophony of the noise of fear or to DRIVE your fear away with the most powerful whisper in the Universe.

I pray it’s the latter.

-Andrew Siefers, MA LPC-S; EMDR

My Rooted Soul Counseling works with individuals, marriages, and families in Celina and Frisco, TX to supplement, support and make a difference in their current circumstances which are too burdensome to understand alone. He is grateful for the life he has in helping come alongside people who are weary, broken, and bent so they might be able to share some of their load with him and release the emotions and stress. Many times he joins people fully engulfed in their crisis and anger because they only seek him when when they don’t have anywhere else to turn. He delights in moments like this because he knows that just a glimmer of hope is enough to begin make a change that leads to different.

He is a Licensed Professional Counselor in the State of Texas. More info can be found at www.myrootedsoul.com