I never enjoyed flying, but it became a significant fear after 9/11. For four years after that act of terrorism, I refused to fly. The day came, however, when I needed to travel to Washington, D.C.
While praying with a prayer partner, I sensed God wanted to set me free from my fear of flying. My response? No, thank you! If I kept the fear, I wouldn’t have to actually board a plane. That was my way of staying safe. But relying on fear for one’s safety is not God’s plan.
After struggling mentally and emotionally with God’s offer, I decided to accept. My friend prayed. I asked the Lord to remove my fear of flying, and He broke the fear off of me. Peace prevailed, and I made my plane reservations.
That was not the end of the story, however. Shortly thereafter, I was picking up my son from his friend’s house. His friend’s father is a pilot, and we began to talk about his work. Without thinking, I repeated what I had often said in the past which was, “I hate flying.” Instantly I felt the fear of flying reattach itself to me. I could have kicked myself for declaring a fear from which God had just set me free.
I confessed my error, and God graciously set me free again. That’s one of the things He loves to do. He doesn’t want us walking in bondage to fear or anything else that keeps us from fulfilling His plans for our lives.
The next step in ‘sealing’ the healing, so to speak, was to walk it out. That meant getting on the plane and trusting in faith for a safe flight.
One more hurdle awaited me. The day of my flight it snowed hard. Real hard. Pink bubbly deicing liquid was being sprayed on the windows and wings as we sat on the runway waiting to take off. Not a comforting sight!
I actually laughed when I saw it. Okay, God, this is really funny. It’s not enough for me to just get on this plane, but You are really testing my faith on this one. Obviously, we landed safely, and I learned a valuable lesson.
God doesn’t want us looking at our circumstances and being frightened.
“Fear not (there is nothing to fear), for I AM with you; do not look around you in terror and be dismayed, for I AM your God. I will strengthen and harden you to difficulties, yes I will help you; yes I will hold you up and retain you with My (VICTORIOUS) right hand of rightness and justice ” (Isaiah 41:10 AMP, emphasis mine).
God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power, love and a sound mind (2 Timothy 1:7). If fearful thoughts plague my mind, I give the fear to the Lord and ask Him to remove it. It helps me to declare that verse out loud or meditate on it until peace is restored.
What are some of the ways you have dealt with fear? I would love to hear your comments.