Reflection
How much of the turmoil seething all around us comes from masks put on to hide deep-seated fears—fear of losing control, fear of being discounted or abandoned, fear of difference, fear of not enough to go around, fear of change, fear of death? The insistent, brash voices that would stir up our fears, playing on our insecurities; and the unpredictable, violent actions of those that relish our terror—both feed on and corrupt our sense of vulnerability. Now is the time for courage, for honestly acknowledging our fears so that they can become bridges rather than walls.
Linda DeGraf
Prayer
May I recognize my fears.
Action
Honestly consider what your fears are. How do they determine your actions? Compared to reality are they valid? What can you do to overcome your fears?
Suggested Reading
For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.
2 Timothy 1:7T
herefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.
Matthew 6:34
Let nothing disturb you,
Let nothing frighten you,
All things are passing away:
God never changes.
Teresa of Avila
Fear is such a powerful emotion for humans that when we allow it to take us over, it drives compassion right out of our hearts.
St. Thomas Aquinas
We can never know what strengths and revelations might be on the other side of our fears until we face them and feel them all the way through. True positive thinking is the mental stance of surrender, simply trusting the process. We learn to accept what is.
Jacqueline Small
We become fearful of one another when our loving nature is blocked. Ignorance is at the root of all bigotry and injustice.
Kevin Ryerson
We live in a time when the greatest form of courage is to act as if our lives made a difference.
William Sullivan
I am not afraid of tomorrow, for I have seen yesterday and I love today.
William Allen White
I have learned over the years that when one’s mind is made up, this diminishes fear; knowing what must be done does away with fear.
Rosa Parks
Ignorance is the parent of fear.
Herman Melville
One of the greatest discoveries a man makes, one of his great surprises, is to find he can do what he was afraid he couldn’t do.
Henry Ford
Fear defeats more people than any other one thing in the world.
Ralph Waldo Emerson