The Book Is Here !!
I wanted to take an opportunity to talk about the latest book in the Authentic Self series, Challenge Your Fear, Empower Your Spirit. This is the third book in the series for a reason. If you have read the first two books and you have decided to embrace the idea that we are all here for a specific purpose and that finding our passion is an integral part of that purpose, you may be ready to put time effort and energy into that task.
But something may be holding you back. You may feel a little reticent to take a chance. You may be skittish or you’re afraid of failing. You may feel like you aren’t qualified or you don’t know enough. Or maybe you are afraid of what others would think about you if you took purpose and meaning seriously and you set goals to fulfill your purpose.
Best selling author and psychologist Jordan Peterson puts it this way when it comes to purpose and meaning in our lives,
“If you have no meaning you are anxious and overwhelmed, we know this from a neuropsychological viewpoint, because purpose gives you a game to play and rules to follow. Purpose gives you something to aim at and positive emotion. Without purpose you are left with inalienable suffering . . . All the meaning in your life is going to come about because of the idea of accepting responsibility. You need the sustaining meaning because otherwise you suffer stupidly and you get bitter, you get resentful and you get cruel and then you get homicidal and then genocidal. That is the whole pathway.”[1]
[1] www.youtube.com/watch/v=1opHWsHr798&t=6389s
One of the ideas that I mention repeatedly in this book is the idea that purpose and meaning are important not only to give us a goal to reach, they provide guidance, protection and provide goal directed motivation. This is important to survive all the trials troubles and tribulations that we all have to face living in a broken, fallen world.
Built for the Storms
One of the most interesting ideas that I came across while doing the research for this book was the fact that we are built to handle adversity trials and storms. That shouldn’t surprise us because scripture tells us
(Philippians 4:5-7 NLT)
The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
The one thing that we may not understand is that if we don’t go through the trial or the storm, we never experience the peace and fulfillment that comes from getting through it. We never get to the spiritual and physiologic changes that occur when we face the trial or the fear. There are actual small structural changes in the DNA in our brains that allow us to better handle the same exact situation the next time around. During the process, we get stronger, we grow larger and more importantly we gain a sense of competence and boldness.
Notice the idea of gain. That is a crucial component of the whole process of facing our fear because many times when we are afraid, our fear is tied to some type of loss. We are afraid of losing our health, or our bank accounts or the loss of a loved one or our job. Losing something can be the basis for our fear. When we confront and challenge our fear, we are gaining.
Fear and the Authentic Self
It is clear from reading and studying scripture that there is one basic truth that we can surmise when it comes to fear and anxiety, we were never meant to live out our lives being controlled and dominated by an emotion. When it comes to absolute truth, we know that we were not given a spirit of fear or timidity. That is the bottom line,
For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline. (2 Timothy 1:7, NIV)
If we choose to live out our lives being controlled and dominated by a spirit of fear, we are not living in authenticity. We are not getting close to the self that God had in mind when he created us. Our true and authentic self is bold, confident and has a sense of competence. These are the attributes we need to face and challenge our fears. It is the recognition that we are not powerless, helpless or hopeless.
When we choose to not confront or challenge our fear, we are living a life that falls short of what God had in mind for us. We have no goal, no purpose and no meaning. This leads to feelings of unfulfillment, anxiety and a sense of aimlessness. The statistics tell us that 100 million people who subscribe to a Christian worldview are experiencing these types of feelings,
As we are looking at the ideas of fear, spiritual power and complacency, we are going to use statistics and data supplied by the Barna research group. When it comes to research that applies to Christian believers, their data is unique, powerful, and compelling. The Barna group collected and compiled data gleaned from surveys over a six-year period that involved over 15,000 people.
“More than 100 million American adults who describe themselves as Christian contend that despite their commitment to God they are still searching for clarity regarding their purpose in life. Tens of millions of self-described Christians feel unfulfilled in life, admit they lack direction,and are disappointed that their faith has not produced the kind of meaning and identity they need, and question whether their life makes a difference.” George Barna, Maximum Faith[2]
[2] Barna,George “Maximum Faith” Metainformation/SGG/WHCP; 1st edition (March 1,2011)p 10
During this week September 21-25 2021, all three books are being discounted. I just wanted to let my email subscribers know about this. Here are the links to buy the books. Challenge Your Fear, will be free for the next few days. If you do take the opportunity to buy or download one of the books and you enjoyed it, I humbly ask that you please leave a review.
Thanks
Your Brother in Christ
Johnny Cavazos MD