“To overcome fear
is the greatest adventure of the mind of man.”

— Ernest Holmes

The Anatomy of Fear

If the human condition has one constant, it is the tyranny of fear. As Dr. Dennis Merritt Jones writes in the September 2020 issue of Science of Mind magazine, “Fear holds us hostage, imprisoning us with invisible bars, keeping us from freely living the lives we were meant to live.”

Jones offers three steps to help transcend fear:

1. You can run but you can’t hide from your fear. “Fear is a feeling that wells up inside us as a reaction to an outer stimulus; that stimulus can, does and will change constantly. This is the first reason to stop, turn and face our fears; they are not out there somewhere — they arise from within.”
2. All fear is attached to a concern of death. “Behind our every fear is the concern of death or the loss of something in our world of people and things, both tangible and intangible,” he writes. “When we can identify the fear surging through our mind and body as being attached to a concern of loss of something, we are able to more mindfully see if for what it is (and isn’t) and respond accordingly.”
3. Fear can be your greatest teacher, if you invite it to be. “Understanding the true message your fear is conveying gives you the opportunity mindfully determine the next proactive step you can take to transcend it.”

Jones sums it up this way: “Overcoming our fear means successfully facing, understanding and transcending it. Only then can we use fear mindfully as a sacred guide to a more joyful, productive, satisfying life.”

Moving from Fear to Faith

In her book From Fear to Faith: A Daily Guide to Finding Solace in an Uncertain World, author Dale Olansky, RScP, offers inspirational messages and honest, sometimes raw, experiences with the vicissitudes of life. She explains that she felt compelled as a spiritual leader to do something to assuage the fear so many Americans faced these past four years.

What started as a Facebook page became a living journal in which Olansky could be intimate and transparent, using her own experiences as a spiritual teaching tool. “My goal was to pull people away from the headlines and into a place of faith so they could feel confident and positive in the midst of unsettling times,” she writes. “My page became cathartic for me and for others as we discovered the Divine in the midst of this human life.”

She adds, “The world we live in has never been perfect, and there has always been something troubling regardless of the time in history. Although that ‘something’ has changed over the years, and the fear factor has waxed and waned, its presence has persisted. Fear is part of the human condition regardless of when we live our lives. And if we are going to live in peace, we have to replace fear with faith.”

Here is a brief excerpt from her book:

As I gazed up at the luminous moon early this morning, I was struck by its light and beauty. I thought about its ever-changing nature as it goes through its different phases and varying shades of colors. As I took a step back, I realized that in reality, the moon never changes at all; it is just a big gray rock orbiting around our earth. Nature is such a great teacher, and here she is, teaching me yet another lesson about the human condition. Just as our position on Earth determines how we see the moon, so our perception colors everything we see in life. We turn the meaningless into meaningful based on what is in our consciousness. Our unlimited capacity to create nothing from something brings great depth to our lives and fills our experiences with substance and value.

— From Fear to Faith is available in paperback and ebook on Amazon or RedWheelWeiser.com, published by Park Point Press.

Facing the Fear: A Prayer

—Holli Sharp

Ultimately, there is only the One Spirit energetically moving through all beings and circumstances. Though we may not understand why in the moment, the wisdom of the universe knows the highest truth, and it beautifully reveals the mystery of life.

If we stop long enough to listen, we can receive the guidance that has no words. It is the language of the millennia, the knowledge and love of all those who have come before us. It continuously flows through us and awaits our attention. Lovingly, It says, ‘There is nothing wrong and nothing to fear. You will return to me and unfold endlessly.’ Its message is pure solace for our souls. …

What a rare gift it is that in all of human history, we are alive at precisely this time — on purpose and with the power to navigate change and instigate evolution. It is a cosmic gift to behold in gratitude with every breath, every thought, every interaction. …

And so it is.

—Excerpted from the 2020 issue of Guide for Spiritual Living: Science of Mind magazine.