A rabbit resting and watching
Fear: 4 Things to Remember to Overcome Fears 15

By Jeanne Takenaka

There’s been a multitude of bunnies this summer. Every morning I walk, I’ve watched as rabbit after rabbit spies me and then scampers away.

I’ve always known they’re skittish.  

But this summer I’ve seen everything from wee babies to old mangy ones. And they are all the same in this:

They seem to live in a fearful place.  Maybe it’s because they’re smaller and lower on the food-chain. And probably because they are, after all, bunnies, but there seems to be only one way for them to overcome fears.

I can be walking on the path praying or looking at what’s ahead on the trail and not even see the little creature to the side of the trail . . . until it hops away. 

A rabbit hunkering in the grass, afraid
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Other times, I’ve noticed them and slowed, tugging out my phone to capture a picture of their cuteness. But before I can move close enough to frame a good shot, they leap away. I know I only want a photo, not to hurt them, but they don’t know this. 

They race away as though I intended to make stew out of them. Granted, they can’t know my intentions; they only know what they think they’re seeing.

Fear is such a liarThis link goes to a great song if music helps you with concepts.

A rabbit sees the writer and prepares to flee in fear
Fear: 4 Things to Remember to Overcome Fears 17
A rabbit races away in fear
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How many times have I been like those bunnies? I’m living out my day, minding my own business, and something unexpected comes along. My first instinct is fear. I begin planning how to get through the “maybe” hard-thing-coming. 

My heart races. 

I bolt to the areas of life I can control . . .

. . . Instead of running to God with my heart and my concerns and resting there in His presence. 

The crazy thing is, my thoughts charge from zero to sixty toward worst-case scenarios faster than a Porsche Carrera. But, I’m not quick to remember I can overcome fears.

A rabbit trying to hide in a field
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If I could tell those rabbits some things, I’d share these 4 thoughts to overcome fears:

  • Don’t be so quick to think the worst case is upon you. Wait a bit and see if the unexpected, seemingly “bigger-than-you” obstacle might be a good thing, not a life-endangering thing.
  • Watch where you run or who you run to. I tend to run to “worst-case” first, rather than to God. But, this always leads to dark places where fear has its way with my thoughts and heart.
  • Remember, most of the time what you fear never comes to pass. When we focus on the “what if’s” we’re going to end up running, and probably to the wrong place. 
  • Remember who your real Protector is. Though the bunnies don’t know it, God is their protector. He’s our protector too. Nothing enters our lives that He doesn’t already know about and that He hasn’t already foreseen. He will bring us through if we trust him. When we trust God rather than relying on ourselves to walk through the circumstance we’re (or think we may be) facing, we’ll walk through it in peace rather than with hearts trembling.
Three rabbits on a dirt trail deciding if they will flee
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He’s our Father, and He loves us. Often times, those big circumstances don’t come to pass in the way we worry they will. And many times, they end up not being as life-altering as we feared. 

But, in those times when the “worst case” becomes reality, we won’t walk through it alone. God always walks with us. He strengthens us to endure whatever we’ll face. Unlike us, God isn’t trapped into a minute-by-minute existence. He’s already seen every second of our lives. He knows how it’ll all turn out. We just need to trust Him.

A meme that says: "In those times when the worst case becomes reality, we won't walk through it alone." The backdrop is a baby bunny near a bush
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Those bunnies may never understand these truths, but when we choose to look to God rather than to focus on fearful circumstances, we won’t have to skitter away into tall grasses. We’ll already be held by the One who loves us most. 

What about you? How has fear ruled you in the past and what have you done to overcome it? When has God brought about a surprising result to a situation you were fearful about?

Click to Tweet: God always walks with us. He strengthens us to endure whatever we’ll face.

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