How to Overcome Fear in College

I am an enneagram 6.

If you haven't taken the enneagram, (go do it, it will change your life) or if you have never heard of it before, than this may not mean much to you. Basically what this means for me is...

My life is controlled by fear and anxiety.

Correction, my life was controlled by fear and anxiety.





Maybe some of you can relate, especially those of you in college or preparing to go to college. I see anxiety all around me on campus every single day. People are afraid of big tests, giving presentations, getting into a graduate program, making friends, choosing the right major, the list could go on and on.

For me though, the fears ran a little bit deeper than that. I've always lived me life on edge. I'm constantly thinking of and preparing myself for the worst case scenario. I can't sleep in a car because I'm afraid the driver will wreck if I do. I can't go to the movies without planning my escape route if anything were to happen. Sometimes, I can't even speak in a group setting because I'm terrified of upsetting people if I say the wrong thing, so I say nothing at all instead.

My favorite verse at the moment is 2 Timothy 1:7

"For God did not give us a spirit of fear, but of power, love, and self control."

I've always loved this verse but until recently I hadn't understood the true meaning behind it. I hadn't understood how life changing this passage of scripture is for me.

I've always thought of my fears as a good thing. A thing that protects people. A thing that protects me. I've always kind of felt like maybe God has placed these fears in my life for a reason. Maybe it's good for me to doubt my abilities, maybe He wants me to protect those around me, maybe He wants me to play it safe.

Listen closely,

God DID NOT give us a spirit of fear.

Friends, your fear is not from God. It's from the enemy. Let me show you how this changed my life because I fully believe that it can change yours too.

One specific fear that I have always had is the fear of commitment and because I have this fear of commitment I'm afraid to get married because marriage is one of the biggest commitments you could make. Don't get me wrong, I love marriage and I've always wanted to be married, but the thought of committing to something that serious has always given me a paralyzing fear.

Ephesians 5:22-24 says this about marriage,

22 Wives, be subject to your own husbands, as to the Lord. 23 For the husband is the head of the wife, as Christ also is the head of the church, He Himself being the Savior of the body. 24 But as the church is subject to Christ, so also the wives ought to be to their husbands in everything.

Marriage is so vital to the Kingdom of God because it's the closest example that world could possibly have of Christ and His church. Marriage in itself spreads the gospel.

Do you think the enemy wants the gospel to be spread? Of course he doesn't!

That's what the enemy does sister! He recognizes that those risks that deep down you would love to take could spread light across the nations! That's why he plants those paralyzing fears deep inside of your bones. That fear of failure? Satan. That fear of commitment? Satan. That fear of what others will think? Satan.

Let me say this one more time for good measure.

God DID NOT give us a spirit of fear.

Are you afraid of speaking your opinion? Of course you are, because how much glory could it give God if you did! Are you afraid of flying? Of course you are, because how effective could you be carrying your testimony over seas! Are you afraid to write that book or record that podcast? Of course you are, because how many people could God use you to reach in that way!

Satan attacks with fear the very things he knows will reap a plentiful harvest. He is smart, but he is NOT God and he has NO power over you.

Do you know how much freedom that gives us?! When you have the ability to recognize that your fears are coming directly from the enemy it is a complete game changer. Now it's a battle, and a battle that I refuse to lose.

So the next time that you feel that crippling feeling of fear creeping up into your bones, call it out as what it is, an attack from the enemy! By trusting in God, learning more about His character through scripture, and remember how faithful He has been to you in the past, you have the ability to overcome your fears.

Jesus did not die for us to sit back in fear.

Go out and fight sister.