Overcoming Fear Bible Study Guide

By Margaret Feinberg and Women of Faith

Women of Faith, renowned for their unique combination of personality and truth, offer fresh new messages in four new topical study guides in the popular Women of Faith Study Guide Series.

Each study guide, teeming with insights and quotes from the conference speakers provides twelve weeks of Bible study and a leader's guide for small groups.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Zondervan
• Release date: May 6, 2007
• ISBN: 9781418583620

Margaret Feinberg

Host of the popular podcast, The Joycast, Margaret Feinberg is a Bible teacher and speaker at churches and leading conferences. Her books and Bible studies, including Taste and See: Discovering God Among Butchers, Bakers and Fresh Food Makers, and Revelation: Extravagant Hope have sold over one million copies and received critical acclaim. She lives out West with the love of her life, Leif, and their superpup, Zoom.

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Copyright © 2007 Margaret Feinberg

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Published in Nashville, Tennessee by Thomas Nelson, Inc.,

P.O. Box 141000, Nashville, Tennessee 37214.

Thomas Nelson, Inc. titles may be purchased in bulk for educational, business, fundraising, or sales promotional use. For information, please email [e-mail].

Published in association with the literary agency of Yates & Yates, Inc.

All Scripture quotations are taken from The Holy Bible, New International Version®. NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved.

ISBN-10: 1-4185-2638-X

ISBN-13: 978-1-4185-2638-2

07 08 09 10 QW 6 5 4 3 2 1

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EBOOK INSTRUCTIONS

In this ebook edition, please use your device’s note-taking function to record your thoughts wherever you see the bracketed instructions [Your Notes] or [Your Response Here]. Use your device’s highlighting function to record your response whenever you are asked to checkmark, circle, underline, or otherwise indicate your answer(s).

CONTENTS

Ebook Instructions

Foreword

Introduction The Sum of All Fears

Overcoming Fears in Relationships

Chapter 1 Outside My Comfort Zone

Chapter 2 Letting Go of the Past

Chapter 3 Running Toward the Future

Overcoming Fears in Life

Chapter 4 Facing the Fear of Rejection

Chapter 5 Conquering the Fear of Intimacy

Chapter 6 Free to Be Yourself

Overcoming Everyday Fears

Chapter 7 Fear of Lack—God as Provider

Chapter 8 Fear of Loss—God as Protector

Chapter 9 Fear of Death—God as Redeemer

Overcoming Fear through Faith

Chapter 10 Embracing His Love

Chapter 11 Sharing Your Faith

Chapter 12 Trusting God with All the Details

Leader’s Guide

About the Author

FOREWORD

There are countless reasons for fear. They lie in the past, present, and future. Generally speaking, I’m not a person who’s afraid very often, but when I am, the first thing that comes to my mind is to pray. It helps me to shift the weight of something too heavy for me onto the shoulders of our Almighty God.

I remember a few times in particular when I was afraid:

In the early 1970s, I moved from Texas (where I’d lived all my life) to California, and within months I began to question the wisdom of that move. Everything about it frightened me—my job, new friends, a different lifestyle—and I so wanted to run back home, even though that prospect frightened me even more. What would people think if I came running back? I felt stuck, and for two years I was virtually buried by fear of both the known and unknown that surrounded me. I prayed fervently about what to do. Lovingly, God showed me I needed to let go of the control I wanted over my life and to allow him to take the lead. Within weeks, I was actually offered another job that resulted in growth and opportunities I never dreamed possible. It also taught me that God knows so much more about what I need in my life than I do.

Then, in the early 1980s, my supervisor at Mobil Oil Corporation retired and I moved into his job. I was the first woman in a management position in that branch of the company. Could I do the job? Was I qualified? Did I know enough? All those fears plagued me and I was afraid to say yes, but more afraid to say no. I began asking the Lord what to do, and he led me to just the right people who prayed with me and knew how to encourage me to make the job work. That position was not only totally enjoyable for the three years I held it, but also opened the door for me to take early retirement to become an author and speaker, the work I love doing to this day.

And most recently, I had a questionable mammogram that necessitated a biopsy. Oh my! How scary is that unknown? Once again I took my burden to the Lord and was assured by his Word and promise that no matter what, he would never leave me nor forsake me in the outcome. He gave me peace.

This study guide addresses numerous fears and how we can face them through the power of Jesus Christ. It identifies the various sources of our fears, challenges us to claim God’s promises, and offers counsel on how to turn our fears over to God. I wholeheartedly recommend it to you for your own study and encouragement.

I once read that fear is a darkroom where negatives are developed. Don’t let yourself live in that room! Move into the light and allow the overcoming truth of God’s Word to give you the faith you need to enjoy a life of freedom.

—Luci Swindoll

INTRODUCTION

THE SUM OF ALL FEAR