“Life is a gift in terrifying disguise, and we are here to open it, until we find the still-quiet place in the center of it, where fear no longer decides.”
In Episode 50 of The Loveable Podcast, we talk about fear. It is an important emotion. It causes us to buckle our seatbelts, run out of burning buildings, and grab our pepper spray when we hear footsteps behind us in a dark parking lot. But in the modern world, our fear has gone rogue. We now get afraid not just about life-threatening situations, but also about life-changing situations. We are afraid not just of dangers, but of opportunities. It’s time to quit letting fear make our decisions for us…
Here are just a few of the takeaways from this week’s episode:
- Practicing our passion is not a leap, it’s a step-by-step process, with each step preparing us for the next one.
- To add just a little beauty to the world is reason enough to practice your passion.
- Our passion only requires an audience of one, and sometimes, for a little while, that audience might even be ourselves.
- If you pay attention to the world instead of the news, you discover that reality is more inspiring than it is terrifying.
- Our fear may not go away, but it should be a passenger in our lives, not the driver.
- Welcome your fear, listen to it, become familiar with it, then discern whether or not you will continue to listen to it.
- If you practice your passion in order to be successful, you will accidentally feed your shame.
- Sometimes fear isn’t telling you to avoid something; it’s telling you that doing it is going to feel vulnerable, but you should do it anyway.
- The voice of your self-encouragement tries to convince you there is no reason to be afraid; the voice of grace tells you that there are good reasons to be afraid but you will be able to handle it.
- Sometimes, fear is telling a half-truth. Be slow. Discern. Listen to the true half. Then quit listening.
- Sometimes you will let fear decide. That’s okay. Learn from it. Choose differently next time.
- If you have strong faith you might have more fear, because you will live boldly and bravely in ways that challenge you anew.
You can listen below or on iTunes!
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In his debut novel, Kelly weaves a page-turning, plot-twisting tale that explores the spiritual depths of identity and relationships, amidst themes of healing, grace, faith, forgiveness, and freedom.
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About Kelly
Dr. Kelly Flanagan is a psychologist, author, consultant, and speaker who enjoys walking with people through the three essentials of a truly satisfying life: worthiness, belonging, and purpose. His blog writings have been featured in Reader’s Digest, The Huffington Post, The 5 Love Languages, and the TODAY Show. Kelly is the author of Loveable and True Companions.
