Like Daniel standing in the lion’s den, we face people and situations that threaten to destroy us and our witness for Christ. But the choice is ours.

Will we succumb to our fears, or will we stand up for God in spite of those fears?

If you want to overcome fear that’s dragging you down, you need to clearly understand the benefits of choosing to stand up for what God wants.

Most importantly, you need to see that doing what God wants you to do is a clear victory over the fear in your life.

Because fear grows. Every time you give in to a fear, it becomes more intense.

Fear grows every time you refuse to do what God wants you to do. Eventually, you’ll feel cornered.

So what do you do?

Follow the lead of early Christians. We’re certainly not the first generation of Christians to face fear. Early believers faced all kinds of persecution. The book of Acts shows us a bit about how they stood up to this fear. As Peter and John proclaimed Jesus boldly in Acts 4, they came up against fierce opposition.

So they prayed, “Lord, take notice of the threats they have made, and allow us, your servants, to speak your message with all boldness” (Acts 4:29 GNT).

The answer to your fear isn’t to give in to it. It’s to move forward boldly in spite of it. You stand up to the fear. Fear doesn’t respond to logic, so your only chance to get rid of the fear is to trust God and face the fear.

Never, ever forget this: God won’t part the water in front of you until you take your first step (see how God did this for Elijah and Elisha in 2 Kings 2:8). You take a step of faith, and then God shows you the path. That won’t happen if you stand wrapped up in your fear.

Take a step in faith today, and watch fear crumble in the process as God guides your steps.