How to Move Forward When You’re Trapped by Fear

Sometimes I feel like Benjamin Bunny, trapped by fear and unable to move forward.

In The Tale of Benjamin Bunny, Little Benjamin Bunny and his cousin Peter Rabbit sneak into Mr. MacGregor’s garden. With Mr. MacGregor gone for the day, they freely roam the garden and fill their bellies with vegetables. But when a white cat interrupts their feast, they run for cover under a basket. To their dismay, the lazy cat stretches out on top of that basket for five hours. The little rabbits remain trapped until Benjamin Bunny’s father appears and chases the cat away.

I empathize with those bunnies. Sometimes my life is rolling along smoothly and I have everything I need. I’m not dealing with any kind of crisis or natural disaster. Mr. MacGregor has left for the day.

Then, bam! Fear sneaks up on me. It may come in the form of a nagging worry…a health issue, relationship dilemma, or financial uncertainty. Or I may see the shadow of a dangerous situation lurking just around the corner. All is well today, but I fear what might happen in the future.

Soon I’m in self-protective mode, running for cover, hiding from responsibilities, and avoiding risk.

Have you been trapped by fear? Unable to make a decision and move forward? Stuck in a sad situation but unable to change?

That’s when we need a Father to chase away the fear and free us from captivity.

I find myself most vulnerable in the middle of the night. That’s when fear creeps in, threatening to take me captive. So I’ve developed a strategy for driving it away. I begin by reciting Philippians 4:6-7

“Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.  And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

Four Steps to Drive Away Fear

To drive away the fear, we follow the advice of these verses.

1. First, identify the culprit. We sometimes wander in a vague fog of anxiety. It helps to clarify the problem and identify the factors causing stress. Prayer is talking to God, so we talk to God and ask Him to help us pinpoint the problem.
2. Next, we ask God for help. We may need wisdom for decisions, strength to endure hardship, or solutions for seemingly impossible problems. Supplication means asking for what we need.
3. Then, we give thanks. We thank God for all the ways He’s taken care of us in the past. We thank Him in advance for what He will do in the future.
4. The fourth step involves recalibrating our minds to focus on what is good.

 Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. 

Philippians 4:8 ESV

If we want to stop thinking negative thoughts, we have to replace them with positive ones. So instead of dwelling on what’s wrong or what bad things might happen tomorrow, we think about what’s right.

Do you have a comfortable bed? Food in the refrigerator? Air-conditioning in the middle of a hot summer? Thank God for those things.

Did someone say a kind word to you? Have you heard a story about heroic acts or unselfish deeds? Has God answered specific prayers recently?

Did you notice the brilliant colors in a sunset or the delicately crafted petals of a flower?

Let your mind dwell on these things.

Also, we dwell on the truth of God’s Word. We may have many reasons to shake our heads and mutter, “What’s this world coming to?” But God is still in control, and His Word is true.

Meditate on His Word. It helps to memorize Scripture. (That way, if you want encouragement from the Bible in the middle of the night, you don’t have to turn on the light.)

Finding the Peace that Passes Understanding

Little Benjamin hid because he feared the cat and what it might do. But “Old Mr. Bunny had no opinion whatever of cats.”

“He took a tremendous jump off the top of the wall on to the top of the cat, and cuffed it off the basket, and kicked it into the greenhouse, scratching off a handful of fur.”

Beatrix Potter, The Tale of Benjamin Bunny

So, also, the things that frighten us are not unsettling to our Heavenly Father. When we go to Him with our fears and concerns, He sends His peace to stand guard over our hearts and minds. His peace protects us from the troublesome fears that take us captive.

God gives us the courage to face our fears and move forward.

Images courtesy of Tim Cooper, Andreas Schantl, Alyona Bogomolova, Jocelyn Morales, and Annie Spratt on Unsplash.