Articles
The Psychology of Fear
According to psychologists, fear is "a powerful and primitive human emotion [that] can actually be divided into two stages, biochemical and emotional. The biochemical response is universal, while the emotional response is highly individualized… Physical reactions to fear include sweating, increased heart rate and high adrenaline levels…sometimes known as the ‘fight or flight’ response, in which the body prepares itself to either enter combat or run away.
"The emotional response to fear is highly personalized. Some people are adrenaline junkies, thriving on extreme sports and other fear-inducing thrill situations. Others have a negative reaction to the feeling of fear, avoiding fear-inducing situations at all costs. Although the physical reaction is the same, fear may be perceived as either positive or negative." [Lisa Fritscher, The Psychology of Fear.]
Since the emotional response is different from person to person, in the exact same situation, one may stand and fight and the other may simply stand trembling or paralyzed in fear. There is no 'expected' reaction to fear situations, and highly-stressful and fear-inducing situations sometimes distinguish the heroic ones from those who are simply unprepared, and even from the cowardly. Sometimes, as noted in the article, fear-inducing activities are welcomed by some [the 'adrenaline junkies'] while others avoid such activities at all costs. In those situations, it is simply a matter of personal preference, and not a sign of bravery or cowardice. I will say this, though: The 'adrenaline junkie' doesn't understand why others do not share in his thrill-seeking, and those who are not 'adrenaline junkies' will never understand why someone would willingly volunteer to participate in sometimes life-threatening situations.
For today, though, let's focus on situations where we are not thrill-seeking, but do face situations that may cause us to fear. Specifically, it is the matter of preparation for such situations that I would like to address today, if for no other reason than the fact our spiritual enemy uses fear quite often to convince people to do nothing, to do his will, or to simply surrender without a fight. How does our adversary use fear, and why? How can we face our fears and conquer them? How can we face fear-inducing situations and do what God wants us to do? Let's try to answer these questions briefly.
Fear: How Is It Used, and Why. Our spiritual adversary wants us to believe we cannot win against him, though God has plainly said, “Resist the devil and he will flee from you” (Jas. 4:7). He will use every weapon in his arsenal to defeat us, starting with our own desires (Jas. 1:13); if that doesn't pull us into sin, then he will use worldly friends to try to convince us (cf. 1 Cor. 15:33); and if that doesn't work, he may use fear in various ways to lead us away from God and into sin. He may use fear of what others might think, say, or do to prevent us from acting on what we know (cf. John 9:20-22; John 12:42, 43); he may use fear of physical harm to dissuade us from admitting to be a follower of Christ (cf. Luke 22:54-62); he may use fear in many other ways, but his end goal is to hinder us or prevent us altogether from doing God's will and being saved.
The thing is, just as was noted in the opening of this study, we don't know how the fear will cause us to respond. The devil himself doesn't know how we will respond, but he knows some will run, instead of standing and fighting, and if he can convince anyone to run, he succeeds. Sometimes, the same person will run out of fear [Peter, as just noted], and the next time, they will stand and fight [Peter, Acts 4:8-31; Acts 5:29-41]. Just remember, one failure to stand doesn't mean you can't stand and fight the next time!
How Can We Face Our Fears and Conquer Them? For each disciple, the kind of fear that will make us run, instead of standing and fighting, will be different from person to person. The first step in conquering our personal fears, though, is to know what those fears are, and why they make us afraid. [I cannot hope to conquer what I don't know!] This requires an honest and thorough self-examination. Now is not the time to pretend something is not a cause for fear when, in reality, it is. Please don't think you're the only one who is afraid, either; someone has said, "Courage is not the absence of fear; courage is overcoming that fear and doing what needs to be done." We all have fears; the only difference is, the ones who don't let fear stop them from doing what needs to be done have found a way to conquer that fear.
The next thing we must do to conquer the fear is to face it; this is a common means of overcoming phobias. The more you face the fear, the more familiar it will become and the less frightening it will be. If you fear public opinion [or that of your close friends], then put yourself in situations where you have to take a stand — over and over until the fear is gone. Don't tell yourself that if you just don't ever face your fears, you won't fail; no, my friend, that's what the devil wants! He loves it when we are as much afraid of failing as we are afraid of anything else he uses. Failing to act, to him, is as good as outright sin! Face the fear and become its master.
Finally, we must remember, in all spiritual battles, something the devil would rather us forget: God is on our side! When the entire Israelite army was cowering in their tents at Goliath's challenges, a shepherd boy went out to fight him because he remembered, “I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. This day the Lord will deliver you into my hand” (1 Sam. 17:45, 46). Paul remembered this, and could say, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” (Phil. 4:13). Our spiritual adversary cannot defeat us when God and Christ are with us, and don't let him convince us otherwise!
Facing the Fears And Winning. One point should never be forgotten when considering possible fear-inducing situations: It is those who are trained to face the fears who have the most success in overcoming them. Police officers and soldiers are trained to overcome their fears and, because of this, they will run towards a fight while everyone else is running away. In the same way, Christians who are trained in the word of God and who have experience facing spiritual battles can more readily face the battles and overcome the fears enough to repel the attacks and make the adversary flee instead; they will eagerly face the fight, while the untrained and inexperienced may avoid the fight.
Remember, your best weapon is the word of God, for it is truth, and our adversary has no answer for it. As Paul noted, “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work” (2 Tim. 3:16, 17). It is when you “Put on the whole armor of God…you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil” (Eph. 6:11). With “the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God” (Eph. 6:17), you can easily defeat the enemy; without it, you put your soul in danger of harm or defeat.
Fear is a part of life, and just as much in the spiritual realm as in the physical. Don't let fear paralyze you, or cause you to run when you should stand and fight; your soul, and possibly the souls of others, is at stake. “Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life” (1 Tim. 6:12). There's a battle to be won! —— Steven Harper
