Looking Fear in the Face by Dawn Klinge
Advent

Looking Fear in the Face by Dawn Klinge

Hello friends, today I have the honor of hosting my sweet blogging friend, Dawn Klinge from Above the Waves who recently published her book “Look to Jesus:How to Let go of Worry and Trust God” available on Kindle and Paperback.

Dawn Klinge Writes…
You gain strength, courage, and confidence
by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face.  You are able to say to yourself, ‘I lived
through this horror.  I can take the next
thing that comes along.’ You must do the thing you think you cannot do
.” –Eleanor Roosevelt
Fear
is completely natural.  It serves a
purpose.  It’s there to warn us when
we’re facing something that could harm us. 
While
listening to our fears might be a smart choice, when we operate from a place of
self-sufficiency.
But,
if we follow Christ, we understand that we are called to something more. 
We are called to lean completely on Jesus.
Trusting
God, no matter what our life circumstances look like, gives us courage because
we bear the name of Christ and He is in us. 
We face fear with faith.
 A typical example would be…
As
Christians, we are blessed with the good news of the gospel.  God’s love for sinners is something that we
must not hold back on sharing. 
But
for many of us, fear holds us back. When Jesus asks for obedience, as he has
when it comes to sharing the gospel (Mathew
4:19
), his command does not stand-alone. 
We are not left alone to carry it out by our own strength.  Jesus is the source of our strength.
“…And Jesus said to Simon, “Do not be afraid; from now on you will
be catching men.” –Luke
5:10
Fear
not.  Those words are repeated often
throughout both the Old and New Testament (Gen 15:1, Deut 3:22, Luke 12:32.)
When
we are following Christ, we can look fear in the face and do the things we
think we cannot do- not because we are so strong, ourselves, but because we
place our trust in a God who is completely sovereign, infinite in wisdom, and
perfect in love.  He is our source of
courage.
I
think back on my own life and some of the decisions I’ve made.  I would say that some of my worst decisions
were made out of fear.  Those were the
times I didn’t pray about what God wanted me to do.  Instead, I took the “safe” route, relying on
myself.  As a Christian, I don’t have to
live that way. 
Conversely,
some of the best decisions I’ve made were the times when I was following what I
felt I was led by God to do- even if I was scared.  I shared some of these stories in my new book
called, Look to Jesus: How to Let Go of Worry and Trust God.
Looking fear in the face does not mean we ignore our
fear.
It
means we use our fears as prompts to ask God, in prayer, what He would
have us do- and then we obey.  

How do you
know what God is calling you to do? 
Well, for starters, He won’t ever ask you to do anything that contradicts His
Word. 

So
if you are confused, go to the Bible. 
Some things, like sharing the gospel, are very clear.  Other things, like where to move, or what job
to take, for example, aren’t always as easy to discern.  I believe, in times like these, God will
often place desires on our heart- and he will use other people to confirm those
desires.  Ask God.  Listen. 
He will make himself and his will known.  
“Ask,
and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be
opened to you.
”  –Mathew
7:7
Fear
is natural.  But you, Christian, are not
alone.  You can take courage because you
are in Christ.  You can trust that He’s got
you, safe in His love.


ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Dawn Klinge is the author of Look To Jesus:  How to Let Go of Worry and Trust God
(January 2016).  

She writes about
Christian faith regularly at Above the
Waves
, drawing on her experience as wife and mom to two.  She holds a degree in education from the University
of Idaho. 

A pastor’s kid and a church
girl her entire life, she’s still trying to figure out what it looks like to
put her trust in Jesus.  Dawn and her
husband, Derek, live near Seattle, Washington. 
You can also find her on Twitter,
Facebook, and Instagram
 Dawn’s book is excellent resource for women book clubs and bible studies. Read my review on Good Reads Here. Please grab your copy here.

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  • This looks like a must read for me. My word for 2016 is fearless. I loved how you said you do not ignore the fear. Thank you for sharing on Faith Filled Parenting.

  • Thank you for sharing this at #100HappyDays. I've battled fear and anxiety a lot. I'm so thankful that God is there to help us through it. I'm pinning this to my Facing Fear board. Thank you!

  • What an encouraging post! Fear is a great tool to propel us into the arms our loving Savior.
    Thank you for sharing your wisdom on this subject!

    • Yes, that's true! Thank you, Long ladies. : )

  • Thanks for sharing Dawn's post with us at Together on Tuesdays!!!!

  • Dawn and Ifeoma, Yes, there are times when we are afraid, due to circumstances, but Jesus repeated many time, "Do not Fear." Thank you for sharing with us here at Tell me a Story. May you be blessed as you continue to walk by Faith.

    • So true. Thank you, Hazel!

  • Sounds wonderful, Dawn! Thanks for sharing, Ifeoma : ) I love these points. So powerful -so needed today! : ) Blessings!

    • Blessings to you, Bethany!

  • Joyce Meyer always says, "Do it afraid!" That's scary though! Love your encouraging words Dawn, no doubt, God will use your story and your book to help others face their fear. God bless!

    • Crystal, I like that…"do it afraid". Thank you.

  • "When we are following Christ, we can look fear in the face and do the things we think we cannot do." This is my testimony as a foster parent. It's something I said I would never do. Loving kids and then letting them go is far from easy, but how can I doubt the ability of One who is completely powerful, sovereign, wise, and loving? His grace enables me. Thank you for sharing Dawn's encouragement with us at Grace & Truth, Ifeoma! 🙂

    • Yes, His grace enables us! Thank you, Jennifer.

  • Thanks for sharing Dawn's encouraging post with us, Ifeoma! Fear is such a prevalent feeling to have, but I never thought of it a motivating factor for prayer, for peace or otherwise. A truly eye-opening piece. Lovely of you to share this on #SHINEbloghop last week! Thanks for joining us!

  • It's so easy ot live the life of a scary-cat–but I've found that that's just perfectionism raising it's ugly head. God desires the best for us, so we can trust him to carry us through (even if we're afraid).

  • Hi Ifeoma … I love your new site … and appreciate Dawn's words on fear and trust. How very much needed by us all …

    • Linda, thank you so much.

  • You must know how much I love this, Dawn. You are speaking my language. <3 And that Eleanor Roosevelt quotes is one of my favorites as well. Spot on!

  • Hi Dawn! Here's the heart of it for me "It means we use our fears as prompts to ask God, in prayer, what He would have us do- and then we obey." God has used fear to grow me. Lately it's a motivating factor in many decisions. Trusting Him is the key. Thanks for joining the linkup at #GiveMeGrace

    • Yes, God has used fear to grow me, too. <3

  • Indeed, Christ is The Source – our source of strength, courage, love and faith! If I ever feel fear grip me, I immediately call on Him! Thank you for sharing!

    • Yes! God is always close and ready to hear us when we call on him.

  • That is another encouraging read. Love to be reminded of this truth.

      • 9 years ago

      Thank you, Lux.

  • welcome to the Friday word prompt site. Enjoyed your blog post. Fear can be so scary but we do have Christ who walks with us through our paralyzing fear. we are not alone.

    • I'm so thankful we're not alone. Yes, it's so comforting to have Christ walk with us through our fears!

  • Dawnita, I hope you enjoy the book!

  • Sounds like a great book. Another for my wishlist this year! Thanks for sharing.

  • Thanks, Ifeoma! Thanks for sharing Dawn's post! I got a glimpse of the book on another post and think it sounds terrific! No matter where we are in our lives or faith walk, fear can be an enemy that lurks about waiting for just the right moment to pounce and catch us off guard! Great to linkup beside you at #FaithBarista today as your neighbor.

    • 9 years ago

    Hi Ifeoma and Dawn! It's so comforting to hear that fear is natural, and not something to be ashamed of. Of course, I shouldn't base my actions on that feeling, but realizing I'm not alone is a powerful thing.

    I love personal stories, they are way more meaningful to me than just talking about a certain subject. Best of blessings on the success of your book, and it's so nice to meet you Dawn!
    Blessings,
    Ceil

      • 9 years ago

      Hi Ceil, thank you…and nice to meet you, too!

    • 9 years ago

    Thank you for allowing me the privilege of sharing with your readers, Ifeoma. God is so good. I'm glad that we don't have to face our fears alone and that we can turn to Jesus.

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