Three Ways To Overcome Fear // Do Not Be Afraid, Part 4

<p>It may come as a surprise, but in this world of stress and anxiety God doesn’t want us to be afraid. But how is that supposed to work?</p> <h5> </h5> <h3><span style="color: #ff9900;"><strong style= "font-size: inherit;">Do Not Worry About Anything</strong></span></h3> <p>Well, here we are – this is the last message in a series of four programmes that I have called “Do Not Be Afraid.” So many people spend so much time being afraid in their lives. Either it’s a crisis or just an ongoing nagging, ongoing sense that something bad is going to happen – a negativity; a pessimism, always thinking the worst. Always imaging the worst outcome – always expecting the worst.</p> <p>So often through the Bible, God says to His people “Do not be afraid.” He doesn’t want us living in fear; He doesn’t want us worrying, and so many of us do. Okay, we might have a brave face; we might have a cool, calm exterior but inside, a lot of people are torn apart; shaken to the core by fear and worry.</p> <p>Well, today we are going to finish up this series by looking at three very practical things that we can do to overcome that. I’m talking about living a life that, by and large, is free from fear and worry. Scary things will still come along at us in life – it’s about living through those things with a calm delight and a resolve, with a deep knowledge that God is in this place with us.</p> <p>The first thing I want to share with you is this: our mind matters! What we do with our thoughts really matters. Back in 1953 a man by the name of Norman Vincent Peale wrote a classic book – it’s called “The Power of Positive Thinking” and for a long time I pooh-hooed that idea. "It’s not about 'positive thinking'"; I said to myself, "it’s about trusting in God." And even when I started reading his book fairly recently, I was sceptical but what he expounds in that book is exactly what God talks about in the Bible.</p> <p>Basically what he says is that: our mind matters. Let me take you to a passage that I often go to myself – it’s written by the Ap