Our Worst Fears are Usually WAY Worse Than Our Realities …

I read this quote in Elyse Fitzpatrick’s (excellent!) book, Overcoming Fear, Worry and Anxiety:

” … Many of God’s people are constantly under apprehensions of calamities which will never occur to them; they suffer far more in merely dreading them than they would have to endure if they actually came upon them. In their imaginations, there are rivers in their way, and they are anxious to know how they shall wade through them or swim across them. There ARE no such rivers in existence … but they are agitated and distressed about them. These timid people are continually crossing bridges that only exist in their FANCIES.

They stab themselves with imaginary daggers, they starve themselves in imaginary famines and even bury themselves in imaginary graves …” Charles Spurgeon

And I immediately thought of this (well known) Bob Newhart clip:

Isn’t it so true that our fears and anxieties don’t discriminate between threats that are real or imagined? And also so true that often, what we perceive to be a threat worthy of our fear ends up being either nothing at all or something much less troublesome than our (vivid!) imaginations had created.

Praying for an anxiety-free day for all of us! May we live out Psalm 34 …
 

“I sought the Lord – he delivered me from all my fears”

Happy Friday—

Your friend,
Tara B.

PS
I just love this video, but please know in advance that I know it bugs some people. I can see why! If you want to understand my heart in it, David Powlison does an excellent job of analyzing how great it is and how terrible it is and why.