Fear is something you will experience each time you try something new, like a new job or a new relationship or a new investment strategy. You will never succeed as long as you keep giving in to fear. The corporate world risks failure every time they launch another product. The fashion world risks failure with each new clothing line. Yet they’re willing to take multimillion-dollar risks to improve their merchandise and boost their sales. Do they always win? No, but without taking a risk they’ve no chance of succeeding at all. The poet wrote: “There was a very cautious man who never laughed or played; he never risked, he never tried, he never sang or prayed. And when one day he passed away, his insurance was denied; for since he never really lived, they claimed he never died!” The fact is, we all fail! The failure rate of the human race is one hundred percent, and everyone (you included) qualifies for membership in this club. But that doesn’t mean you have to live with the fear of failure. Faith in God is what gives you the courage to confront your fears and live the life He meant you to live. If you don’t, you’ll suffer the regret of “what could have been.” You’ll never be perfect, so you’ll never be perfectly successful. That doesn’t mean you will not succeed in life—but you must try. Fear is a “spirit,” and if you let it, it will control you. God offers you three better options: “Power…love…a sound mind.”
“God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.” 2Ti 1:7
A tourist was driving through the countryside when he saw an old farmer sitting in a rocking chair on his porch. Behind his farmhouse was seventy-five acres of land. The tourist asked, “Is that your land?” “Yep,” he replied. “Well, what are you doing with it? Thinking of growing cotton?” the tourist asked. “Nope, I’m afraid the boll weevils will get it,” said the farmer. “What about corn?” the tourist asked. “No, I’m afraid the locusts will eat it,” he replied. “Well,” the tourist asked, “What about raising cattle?” The farmer said, “I’m afraid the price of beef might go down.” “So, what are you going to do with all that prime farmland?” the tourist asked. “Nothing,” said the farmer. “I’m just going to play it safe.”
Is that how you feel? When you choose to play it safe in life, your potential for success is like that barren wasteland. As long as fear rules your life, you won’t step out in faith and fulfill your destiny. The Bible says that without faith it is impossible to please God (See Heb 11:6). Isn’t it better to risk failure and do what God wants, than risk displeasing Him? We’ve all experienced fear that makes us want to pull back. Only those who overcome it go far in life. “Let the Lord be magnified, which hath pleasure in the prosperity of his servant” (Ps 35:27). Conquering the fear of failure begins with believing, “God wants me to succeed.” Undergirded by that truth you can not only defy your fears, but defeat them.
