Being homeless was not my greatest fear.
Others fear being homeless, but I was raised in a home where every week we practically faced the prospect of being homeless.
You go broke slowly and then all at once.
Not our home.
We were just always broke as a family and so there was never an 'all at once' moment.
Would we have a place to live next week? Who knew.
Electric? Water? Food?
What would we do if we didn't?
We faced it so much and so often I didn't fear it.
I thought it was virtually inevitable.
Turns out, it was.
It was going to happen at some point and it did.
The bank foreclosed on the house and gave us X number of days to move out or be put on the street.
Good times.
--
I thought about this because I just read someone else say how their greatest fear growing up was being homeless.
Now this person is a pentamillionaire.
Has over $5 million in wealth and is part of the top 1%.
It made me wonder if I was raised without fear.
And had I been raised with the kind of fear he has - the fear of losing everything - how would things be different today?
My mother became extremely materialistic later in life.
"This is my 2 carat diamond ring."
"Here is my $5000 couch and ottoman."
"I just got a new ..."
She still works full time at a grocery store.
The one she's worked at for nearly 30 years.
Let that sink in. (In her defense she marries well - on husband #4 now I believe)
--
Though it wouldn't solve any of today's current issues, it's interesting to think about fear and either having it or not having it - and what each mean.
We spend so much of our lives worrying about this that and the other - what happens when what we worry about happens.
Maybe I did have a fear of being homeless.
But I dealt with that fear so much and so often that when the day came and I was homeless, I took it more 'matter of fact' and less in panic.
It happened.
It does happen.
What kind of opportunities does it provide? That's the question I ask.
--
Some fears we can't survive.
The loss of a child.
Learning we have cancer.
Knowing that death may be imminent.
Even then, what can you do?
What happens in this life just happens.
To think otherwise is silly.
Sure, you have some "control" over your life - and it's this:
You decide how you react to whatever situation life throws your way.
That's it.
That's all you have.
Because you personally can't move mountains.
You personally can't make anything happen.
But you can look for open doors and opportunity in most every situation.
--
I'm reminded of King Belshazzar who was told by God to get his pride under control or he was going to lose everything - including his kingdom (book of Daniel in the Bible).
Guess what happened?
He went out on the roof of his palace, looked around the land, and said, "look at all this I've built for myself and my glory."
BAM.
He was done.
Driven from town.
Lost everything.
For 7 years he wandered in the fields.
Outcast.
Only when he lifted his head and acknowledged God was sovereign over Earth and men was he returned to his kingdom.
"At the end of that time, I, Nebuchadnezzar, raised my eyes toward heaven, and my sanity was restored. Then I praised the Most High; I honored and glorified him who lives forever. His dominion is an eternal dominion; his kingdom endures from generation to generation.
All the peoples of the earth are regarded as nothing. He does as he pleases with the powers of heaven and the peoples of the earth. No one can hold back his hand or say to him: "What have you done?""
As my grandmother would say, "that's some pretty good stuff right there."
--
Worries. Fears. Everyone has them.
I have to remind myself to remember this lesson:
I am not in control and I shouldn't let my pride or ego get ahead of me.
When I become self-centered and think it's 'all about me' I turn into Lieutenant Dan and start cursing God for the lack of open doors and opportunity coming my way. In fact, I stop looking for opportunity altogether and get in a depressed frame of mind.
To do that is my greatest fear.
That can only lead to a miserable, go-nowhere life where you blame others for your shortcomings and you never really move forward in life.
I use that fear to push myself in to finding opportunity because I don't want to be that failure.
Use your fear - whatever it is - as a motivation to keep seeking Open Doors and Opportunity. Let it motivate you and not discourage you.
What are you afraid of? What opportunity lies in that fear? Are others afraid of the same thing? Is there a market there? Can you create something that will help others? Can you become an expert on that fear by studying and learning all there is to know about it? Can you sell what you create?
If you study your fear and not simply focus on the fact you have fear you could be able to turn that fear into something positive in your life. There's an open door there and all you have to do is walk through it.
Offers/Advertising:
White Hot Weight Loss
Regain Sharper Focus and Boost Your Memory
A Ground-Breaking New Diet
The Jesus Diet
Post Sponsored by:
