Every Thursday I feature a “throwback” post from my blog archive. The goal is to take a look back and discover new lessons or new opportunities to grow. This week, we’ll look back at “The Trouble with Standing.” You can view the original post here. For today, here’s a quick recap and a few more thoughts about fear and chasing scary dreams.

“The Trouble with Standing” came from one of those days when I watched my kid learn a tough lesson. It was about the time for her to start walking and it was obvious that she was ready. Her big sister was running and jumping all the time and so the little one was developing quite the interest. One day she went to take her first step and she fell flat on her face. She didn’t try to walk again for weeks if not months. Every time my wife or I tried to hold her hands and help her walk, she would curl her legs up in a ball and refuse to let them touch the floor. It was that day she realized that the comfort zone is way safer and less painful than what’s outside of it. 

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Maybe you don’t remember learning how to walk but I bet you can remember the last time a risk blew up in your face. Maybe you can remember the last time you put yourself out there and got your feelings hurt. Maybe someone said your goals are too lofty, your dreams are dumb, or your new idea is a pipe dream. Maybe you gave your dreams a real shot and you failed. All of these things can hurt, and honestly, they feel like falling flat on your face. They cause us a great deal of pain and give our brains the space to say, “I am never trying that again.” 

We can’t be too hard on our though. They are wired to protect us. They are designed to keep up safe and to prevent us from getting hurt. Every time we approach a risk our brain says, “wait a minute, let’s think this through.” This voice only gets louder if we’ve been hurt before. If you’ve ever had an accident that resulted in an injury, you know this. Most people avoid the places or activities that have resulted in physical pain. Our mantras say things like “If at first you don’t succeed try try again.” But our brain’s say, ““If at first you don’t succeed it’s trash, I’m trash, I’m never doing that again!” 

While our brains may operate this way, we are not intended to live this way. The apostle Paul encourages his young protege, Timothy in this saying: “For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands. For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love, and self-discipline” (2 Tim 1:6-7). Fear is not from God. Fear is not your calling and fear is not your future. When you place your goals and dreams in God’s hands, your future is power, love, and self-discipline. 

Good news! My daughter learned to walk. She’s eight years old now and she’s actually quite good at it. So good in fact that she is a gymnast who not only knows how to walk, but to run, to jump, the leap, and to tumble. Those things can, and have, hurt her way more than walking ever could but she finally refused to let one painful experience stand in the way of growing and developing into who God has called her to be. What fears are you facing right now that are holding you back? I want to encourage you to take Paul’s words to heart. Know that your future is to walk in God’s power, to experience His love, and to grow in self-discipline. Face your fears and chase your dreams! I am in the fight right beside you!