Fear is a very interesting emotion. It’s created by one thing: uncertainty over the future, and it operates in the realm of our imagination. It’s amazing how we play things out in our minds, and most people don’t know what to do with it. Fears end up running wild in their imaginations, particularly when they wake up at two or three o’clock in the morning and their minds start whirling. That’s when fear runs rampant, and it cripples our lives in a multitude of ways.

Interestingly, in both the Old and the New Testament, the number one imperative from God to His people is to fear not. Be anxious for nothing. Do not worry.

So what is it that we fear? Well-known psychologist Larry Crabb says that we all have two basic psychological needs in our lives:

• The need for security, and
• The need for significance

What do I mean by significance? It’s the belief that your life makes a difference that will last over time. At the end of our lives, each of us hopes that our life was important in some way.

Our need for significance creates an incredible fear of failure in us that we carry around – an incredible fear that we’re going to fail somehow out in the workplace or in our relationships.

As you listen to this message, ask yourself these questions: How is God trying to use this in my life? What’s He trying to teach me? Maybe for some of us, He’s trying to make a spiritual breakthrough in our lives.

Today is the second of 3 talks that I gave back in 2009 after the stock market crash. These talks became the foundation of my book The True Measure of a Man, which continues to impact many lives, both men and women.

Learn how to get Chapter 1 of The True Measure of a Man for FREE here.