Fear. It's something that I have always been very familiar with. A constant companion for the first 25 years of my life. However, these past few months God has been breaking chains that have entangled me and I am moving forward and living life in a way that I have never experienced.
2 Timothy 1:7 says For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power, love, and self-discipline.
The past few days, my teammates have been reminding me of how big these changes have been and of how I am facing my fears on a daily basis.
Last month in El Salvador our team went to visit some waterfalls for the day. I agreed to go not really wanting to be there and with the attitude that I would never get in the water with the rest of my team. I watched my teammates enthusiastically jump into the falls as I stood by afraid and timid of both the height and of being beneath the water. However, something inside me said so strongly, "you will regret not doing this" and I just stepped off the edge and went for it. Afterward I felt exhilarated as the adrenaline flowed for hours afterward. Looking back I am so proud of myself for trying something that was so far outside of my comfort zone.
I also started to overcome my fear of feet by allowing my beautiful friend Grace Chen to wash my feet a few days ago. Then, I even went further and along with my team members we washed our leaders (Brent) feet! I have also found myself being more bold and speaking out when I know that the Lord has put something on my heart.
Life is precious and short. I know that I have wasted too much time allowing external circumstances, fearful thoughts, and other people to dictate my daily actions. Not anymore. I would encourage you to start writing down your fears and don't allow yourself to end this month with those same fears dominating your life.
We are sons and daughters of the King. Let's start living like it.
Much love, Betsy (aka Belle…inside joke for the team)
BTW…my teammate Jordan (aka Charles) wrote the most amazing blog post about our team. Make sure to check it out!
http://jordanalessi.theworldrace.org/?filename=meet-my-teammates
