When did I stop....

...worrying about what other people thought?

This is something I have done for quite a while.  Years most likely.  It would stop me from making phone calls at work because I was worried about what the others would think of what I said.  It would stop me from making phone calls at home because I was worried about bothering others or that I would say something stupid.  It would stop me from asking questions at seminars, in classes, anywhere really.

I knew it was irrational, I knew it was silly.  I cannot know what others think and I cannot control it.  But I couldn't get past it.

So I allowed a worry, a fear, to take control. 

But this week at work, I noticed that when I needed to make a phone call, I didn't have the usual pause.  I didn't stop to think what others would think, I would just pick up the phone and call because it needed to be done. 

"...for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control."  2 Timothy 1:7

I don't know what changed.  I don't know why now. 

But I do know it is all because of God's love.  His amazing, unfathomable love.  Why He loves us so much I truly cannot understand.  But whether or not I understand it, I can feel it. 

I have made it to the book of Revelation in my reading through the Bible from cover to cover.  The book of Revelation has never made as much sense to me as it is this time.  Is it because I've read everything leading up to it?  Is it just because I have moved along further in my walk with Jesus?  I don't know.  But I would encourage anyone that hasn't read the Bible from cover to cover to do so.  It is a challenging but fulfilling task.

In His Grace...