Once upon a time there was a little munchkin named Cait. \u00a0She loved Barbies and nail polish, America and heaven, sunshine and flowers, boy and babies, family and friends, sparklers and birthday cake, nightgowns and puppies, Christmas and
\nfairytales. \u00a0She liked to think she was the epitome of the American girl
\n if there ever was one. \u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
When she was just a wee one, her momma and daddio took her to Sunday School where she heard about <\/p>\n
a man named Jesus. \u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
She knew He wasn\u2019t just any ordinary fella, but He was the very Son of
\nGod. \u00a0She learned that Jesus came to earth and died on a cross because
\nHe loved her. \u00a0He died so that she could be set free from all her fears,
\n all her worries, all her cares, all her concerns. \u00a0After three days of
\nbeing dead, He came back to life. \u00a0He rose from the dead, so that all
\nwho believed in Him wouldn\u2019t ever really die but would get to live in
\nheaven forever in the great and glorious land for which they were
\noriginally intended \u2013 together with their Father, unafraid, unashamed,
\njoyous and peaceful, safe and secure, filled with love and compassion.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Little Cait so looked forward to the day she could be with Jesus. \u00a0She
\nbelieved He was the Messiah. \u00a0She believed that He had saved her, and
\nthat He loved her unconditionally. \u00a0She knew He was mighty and powerful
\nand had authority over the heavens and the earth.<\/p>\n
Yet as she grew up, she noticed she was often afraid.<\/p>\n
In fact, often may have been an understatement.\u00a0<\/p>\n
She was afraid of practically erryyyyyything.
\n \u00a0She feared it all. \u00a0She was afraid of the dark, elevators, spiders,
\ngetting lost, Splenda, scary movies, diabetes, cancer, car wrecks,
\ndrowning, airplane crashes, tornados, mold, french fries, ticks,
\nmedicine, slip-and-slides, germs, hair nets, cockroaches, Fox News,
\nmice, talking to boys, guns, gangs, and everything in between.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\nCait was sometimes so afraid of getting sick that she made herself sick. \u00a0<\/p>\n
She was afraid of what the other kids at school thought of her. \u00a0But
\neven more so, she was often afraid of what God thought of her. \u00a0She
\nworried that one day He might change His mind and decide he didn\u2019t
\nreally love her. \u00a0She sometimes wondered if he\u2019d ever simply stop loving
\n her.\u00a0<\/p>\n
She was afraid He wouldn\u2019t really protect her because she was too gross
\nfor Jesus to really love her. \u00a0She was afraid that one day the terrible,
\n dark enemy would over take her and snatch her out of her Father\u2019s
\nhands. \u00a0She was afraid of her thoughts and deeply afraid of rejection.
\n She was constantly fearful that something was wrong with her, that she
\nwas unloveable, and suspicious that God couldn\u2019t really be trusted. \u00a0She
\n feared making decisions \u2013 particularly making the wrong decision. \u00a0She
\n was afraid that if she chose incorrectly, she would walk out of God\u2019s
\nwill for her life and she would be removed from the house of God
\nforever.<\/p>\n
In her heart, she knew that God would never remove His love for her and
\nthat her fears were irrational and ridiculous and grounded in nothing
\nbut lies, but yet she was still afraid.\u00a0<\/p>\n
She lived in a constant state of anxiety \u2013 her mind running wild with a
\n thousand what-ifs, her stomach full of what felt like icky worms that
\nrolled around inside her all the time, and her back full of tight knots
\nthat seemed impossible to get rid of.\u00a0<\/p>\n
She felt as though she was a slave to fear. \u00a0She served fear \u2013 not God.
\n \u00a0In her head, she knew God loved her, but in her heart, she often
\nquestioned how much and if His forever really meant forever.<\/p>\n
\u2014Anonymous<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Once upon a time Once upon a time there was …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[12749],"tags":[287,703,1123,3,1895],"class_list":["post-1541","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-tumblr","tag-god","tag-jesus","tag-jesus-christ","tag-quote-of-the-day","tag-religion"],"yoast_head":"\n