Do you worry about making the right decision or if the decision you make will cause unwanted pain? How can we stop the unending spiral of thoughts keeping us stuck from moving forward because we are afraid to make the wrong move or a bad decision?

2 Timothy 1:7 reminds us of three gifts God has given us to overcome our fears and give us courage.

For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind. - 2 Timothy 1:7

Power. Love. A sound mind. Three gifts that free us from a spirit of fear.

The first step to overcoming fear is recognizing where it’s coming from. “…God has not given us a spirit of fear…”. If it’s not coming from God then it’s coming from the evil one. The root of fear is unbelief. We discount God’s goodness towards us. We doubt his love. This comes from the enemy. We must recognize first where fear originates and renounce it. Then, we rely on the gifts God has given us to win the battle against fear.

If a spirit of fear comes from the evil one, God gives us power, love and a sound mind. All things we need to walk in confidence in the face of persecution, timidity or decision making.

Let’s look at each of these gifts:

* Power

You have the power of the Holy Spirit living inside you! Just let that thought sink in. The power Jesus possessed —to resist temptation, to fight evil, to raise from the dead — that same power now lives in you. We rest in his Sovereign will for our lives whether we are making decisions or walking through hard things, because we have his constant supernatural power available to us to move mountains and fill empty places.

* Love

You are loved. Not with a fickle love that wavers when you fail, but a constant and steadfast love that doesn’t fluctuate. Rely on the love of the Father. He loves you in this moment and in the next and in the past. His love is steadfast. Walk in the truth that you are loved. Love others from this place. Make decisions with the knowledge that his love is keeping you. All that matters is his love for you and your love for him.

* Sound Mind

Not only do you possess the gifts of spirit-filled power and spirit-filled love, but you are given a mind that is healthy and whole. A mind that focuses on what is true and lovely and praiseworthy. A mind that is self-controlled in the face of out-of-control fears. The word for sound mind is only used here in 2 Timothy 1:7. It means self-controlled. Or, as I like to say, ‘spirit-controlled’.

BibleHub.com says,

[It’s] safe-minded, issuing in prudent ("sensible") behavior that "fits" a situation, i.e. aptly acting out God's will by doing what He calls sound reasoning.

Power, love and a sound mind are gifts of God. Anything that creates powerlessness, self-hatred or an unstable mind is not from the Lord . We refute and renounce these things in Jesus’ name.

Here is one very practical way to stop these spiraling thoughts in their tracks:

Literally say “STOP IT” out loud. I know it will seem weird at first, but this step of voicing those words can pull us out of a spiral. Capture that thought and make it obedient to Christ. Then, to give it more meaning, attach a physical act with it. Grip a chair, snap a rubber band on your arm. Something simple and gentle that will jar you from your spiraling thoughts that leave you stuck. Next, replace that thought with truth. Oftentimes it’s the opposite thought that applies salve to the wounds inflicted by the unruly chatter in our minds.

When your anxious heart paralyzes you in fear, flip the script by praying that your heart would be captured by a desire to love God and be loved by him. Remember the gifts he has given you: a spirit of power, a spirit of love and a spirit of a sound mind.

No matter the outcome of a decision, no matter the pain, no matter the disappointment in the waiting, one thing matters: He loves you immensely and desires for you to know this love and be known by this love.

Oh, that we would be captured only by the desire to love Christ and be loved by him.

Jesus, capture our anxious hearts with your love.

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