You Don't Own Me
When I was in middle school, I was obsessed with The Hunger Games. They were my favorite movies, and I would eagerly anticipate the new movies and reread the book when waiting for them to come out. I recently rewatched them since being at home and there was a line that stuck out to me. It is this: hope is the only thing stronger than fear.
Fear has been a big theme in my life recently. I am constantly living in fear and questioning everything. What if I am missing out? What if I say too much? What if I don’t say enough? What if nobody likes me? What if I am not pretty enough? Good enough? Fill in the blank. These are questions I have found myself dwelling on the past few months. They consumed my mind and have sent me into a downward spiral of an identity crisis. It has led me to question who I am and who I want to become, and I get really frustrated with myself. It honestly seems like an endless cycle of defeating thoughts and impossible situations.
This has led me to a buttload of thinking about what hope is. By definition, hope is a feeling of expectation and desire for a certain thing to happen. We place hope that the coffee maker will work in the morning so you can function at work. We place hope that our car will start so that you can complete the list of errands before everything closes. We place hope in relationships that will ultimately fail us. The thing wrong with the definition of hope is that it is an expectation. Expectations often led to disappointment, anger, and despair. When expectations are not met, we feel hopeless. It is a rather unforgiving and cruel cycle.
However, what matters are the things that we place our hope in. I place hope in the government to protect me and to keep my home safe. But that is a false hope. I place hope in my psychologist to fix all my problems. But that is a false hope. I place hope in the hands of the Father where I can lay all my worries and burdens. That is real hope. It is realizing God is so much bigger than our mundane worldly problems. It is realizing God wants us to lean into Him and trust Him with our fears. It is realizing God wants us to turn to Him in our victories with praise and thanksgiving.
John 16:33 says, “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world, you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world”. Jesus has solved our issues before they have even started.e knows the answer to our prayers before we turn to Him. God goes beyond our expectations. Just because the outcome is unseen or the answer seems lost within the question does not mean there is an impossible solution. It means that the God of the universe has plans that are so much bigger and better than our own. He has overcome before my battles have even started. He is the peace within the chaos. He is the answer when everything gets blurred by the lies of this world. Fear, you don't own me. I refuse to let myself be held back by the fear of things I cannot control. My identity is held at the heart of Jesus and that is the greatest victory in itself.
Fear has been a big theme in my life recently. I am constantly living in fear and questioning everything. What if I am missing out? What if I say too much? What if I don’t say enough? What if nobody likes me? What if I am not pretty enough? Good enough? Fill in the blank. These are questions I have found myself dwelling on the past few months. They consumed my mind and have sent me into a downward spiral of an identity crisis. It has led me to question who I am and who I want to become, and I get really frustrated with myself. It honestly seems like an endless cycle of defeating thoughts and impossible situations.
This has led me to a buttload of thinking about what hope is. By definition, hope is a feeling of expectation and desire for a certain thing to happen. We place hope that the coffee maker will work in the morning so you can function at work. We place hope that our car will start so that you can complete the list of errands before everything closes. We place hope in relationships that will ultimately fail us. The thing wrong with the definition of hope is that it is an expectation. Expectations often led to disappointment, anger, and despair. When expectations are not met, we feel hopeless. It is a rather unforgiving and cruel cycle.
However, what matters are the things that we place our hope in. I place hope in the government to protect me and to keep my home safe. But that is a false hope. I place hope in my psychologist to fix all my problems. But that is a false hope. I place hope in the hands of the Father where I can lay all my worries and burdens. That is real hope. It is realizing God is so much bigger than our mundane worldly problems. It is realizing God wants us to lean into Him and trust Him with our fears. It is realizing God wants us to turn to Him in our victories with praise and thanksgiving.
John 16:33 says, “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world, you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world”. Jesus has solved our issues before they have even started.e knows the answer to our prayers before we turn to Him. God goes beyond our expectations. Just because the outcome is unseen or the answer seems lost within the question does not mean there is an impossible solution. It means that the God of the universe has plans that are so much bigger and better than our own. He has overcome before my battles have even started. He is the peace within the chaos. He is the answer when everything gets blurred by the lies of this world. Fear, you don't own me. I refuse to let myself be held back by the fear of things I cannot control. My identity is held at the heart of Jesus and that is the greatest victory in itself.
Heavenly Father,
Give us courage through the trials,
boldness to make Your name known,
and guiding hand to lead us down Your path.
Amen.
Song of the Week: "Bigger Than I Thought" by Passion
Scripture of the Week: John 16:33
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