30 Days Of Emotional HealthSýnishorn

I was a prisoner of timidity.

Being shy and introverted, I tended to avoid attention. I was usually the one standing in the corner. I refused to attend youth group where I might have to join in a game. After college, I ran into a high school classmate I’d always liked and was crushed when he commented he didn’t remember ever hearing me speak.

Moving into the dorm as a freshman was a challenge. I started attending the Baptist Student Union noon meeting where I loved the safe and familiar environment.

But each day one of the students gave a testimony. In misery I began going straight to my room after class. My heart pounded as I imagined being asked to share my testimony and I refused to take that risk. I wanted to go but felt trapped thinking, “This is how God made me. I can’t help it.”

Praying and reading the Bible, I found 2 Timothy1:7.

The truth hit me like a piercing light.

My fear didn’t come from God!

I realized I’d believed a lie. God created me with my reserved personality but my fear didn’t come from Him.

I turned from accepting this untruth and asked Him to help me by the power of the Holy Spirit. I went back the next day and volunteered to give my testimony. I told them this story. It had a powerful impact on them and me. I was transformed when I learned that, by depending on the Holy Spirit, I could overcome fearful timidity.

It’s a battle I’ll always face. But it’s never had the same control over me. I’m no longer a helpless captive to fear. There’s power in what we believe.

Are you enslaved by a lie? Search God’s word. Find the truth and stand on it for freedom.

~Susan Aken

Writer