Recently
I went ‘tubbing’ (this is where you take tyre tube from a tractor down the
river) with my family, yes we love adventure :) And well it was a
lot more rocky than I expected and at one point I got so scared that I got off
my tube and walked down the rocks instead. You see about 3 years back (or
more?) I went tubing and down the rapids I got hurt. I don’t remember what
happened, but my parents tell me there was a cement wall and I went down and
hit some rocks. But while my conscious memory cannot remember, my sub-conscious
certainly can, and it induced a fear ride 3 years later. The whole ride I was
anxious and fearful, and to be honest not enjoying myself. And I
wondered is this how I approach relationships, full of fear and stopping half
way and not just going with the flow/tide and enjoying the ride? You see some
hurts in my past, even though some forgotten and others not, still impacts the
way I do relationships now, hesitant because of fear that I will get hurt and I’m
not only talking about romantic relationships. I feel it takes courage to try
again in love after one has been hurt. But this (fearing people and relationship) is not how God calls me to live, instead He wants me to trust Him with my heart and from that place trust and love others freely.
Then
there are those of you who have a different type of fear, the type that are
like the Runaway Bride, afraid of being alone. These are the people who go from
one relationship to the next. They are not like me who is scared to try in the
first place, but instead they are afraid of what they will face if they are
alone. They need courage and the help of God, to allow them to heal their hurts which cause them to cling to relationships, and they should give themselves time to be alone.
Neither these approaches are godly, for God says “For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power,
love, and self-discipline.” 2 Tim 1:7 (NLT). You
see through Christ we need to trust Him to free us from our fears, so that we
can be brave enough to try again for He holds our hearts; or that we can be brave enough to be alone for
in Him we truly are never alone. Let us allow God’s perfect love to wash away our fears (1 John 4:18).
May God bless you
with courage
And keep you in His
hands, as you face your fears
May He make His face
shine upon you as He heals your hurts
And give you peace in
yourself and your relationships
