WHY YIELD TO FEAR?

Last night as I was having trouble turning off my brain, I had a few thoughts I decided I want to share. So here I am!

As I was lying there with ideas swirling around my brain, I found the majority of them were fear orientated. I was specifically worried about getting injured again. My body, and those areas I’ve hurt in the past, have been so irritated lately. I simply do not know how to make it better. And then on a more macro level; I was panicked about the direction of my life, followed by the state of the world in general… No wonder I couldn’t sleep!

And as I listened to these thoughts I wondered to myself, why is it so much easier to yield to fear than the faith that things will one day work out? I see that the more I focus on fear, the worse I feel, and subsequently almost end up causing those very things I’m afraid of. So, with this understanding, why do I do it?

I concluded the reason is because the outcomes of my fears are predictable. If these things come true, I know what to expect: injury, aimlessness, failure, loneliness, loss, and if for instance the world really does collapse, death. By embracing these irrational thoughts I have an idea of how my life will go.

Conversely, by focusing on faith, I only see the next step in front me. I cannot predict the true outcome of my life. While I am working hard towards my goals, there’s no guarantee they will actually come true. All I have is the knowledge I am moving in the right direction, and the faith that as I take those steps, my next course of action will come to light. This lack of certainty is much harder to cope with than the concrete outcome of various fears coming true.

However, there are a couple major flaws in my line of reasoning. While I know the outcomes of my fears, there is still no guarantee that any of these things will actually happen. In fact, the majority probably will not.

Second, if I am truly pursuing my passion, what is there to fear anyway? If each day is spent chasing my dream, that makes the course of my daily life infinitely better than if I decided to instead yield to fear; and in doing so decided to take a more “secure” or “safer” course of action, which would only make me sad. All giving into my fear does, is wastes the precious time I could have been pursuing my dreams, waiting for something scary to happen, that might not even occur. This is no way to live.

If each day is spent with my end goals in mind, there is no reason to fear, for I know I am moving in the direction that will allow me to give my very best to the world. There is no way around this principle. It’s like going shopping and finding a pair of jeans that fit, versus a pair that are too big or too small. The perfect pair is the best option; even if they are for instance much more expensive. For they are going to bring the most comfort, and be much more useful than a less expensive brand that is simply not the right cut to fit your body type.

My purpose in writing this post is to remind myself of these things. I need to be guided my passion and faith, understanding that this action is what will allow my dreams to come true. The more I adhere to fear, the less likely it is my goals will ever be within reach. I believe our mind, body, and soul are all intertwined. By attending to fear, there’s no way to say what ideas, potential, happiness, and light I could be missing out on to make my dreams a reality. I cannot let my brain squelch my spirit.

While in the moment fear seems secure, absolute, and safe, it is the opposite. For it robs us of our heart being able to guide us towards our next step to reach our goals. I believe those who are happiest and most successful are the individuals who have listened to their heart, and decided to pursue their true calling. I must trust in this belief, and remember it applies to everyone, including me, I know as I take each step, the next will come into fruition and my dreams will continue to get closer, while my fears will become more obsolete. This is simply the way it works.

And if a catastrophe really does happen; do I want the time I have focused on this event, or making the most of my time here to give my best self? There is simply no reason to let the possibility of a fear coming true, take away from the moments when this fear is nothing more than a figment of our imagination, trying to deter us from our dreams.