Today’s post is from Bianca Juarez Olthoff. ‘B’ works for The A21 Campaign as the Chief Storyteller. And she is believes in me, and my dreams, even when I can’t believe in them myself. Bianca dreams and she dreams big. I am immensely thankful Bianca and her husband Matt and how they have welcomed me into their life and their family.
Read Bianca’s blog here.
Follow her on twitter here.
In a pivotal moment of life, I had the opportunity to connect with a brilliant man who challenged my dreams, my aspirations, but more importantly, my fear. It went a little something like…
Me: I want to do [______________] and I can’t.
Him: What’s stopping you from doing it?
Me: I don’t know. I can’t explain it…
Him: I don’t know you well, but I can tell you know what it is. And I’m pushing you to articulate what’s holding you back.
Me: Okay, okay. I’m… I’m so… fearful.
Him: You’re fearful of being fearful?
Me: Yes.
Him: What’s the worst possible thing that could happen? What’s the worst case scenario? Lay it on me!
Me: I’m fearful of the consequences of following my heart and failing. I fear losing money on empty pipe dreams. I fear poverty. I fear inability to change what everyone seems to believe cannot. I fear failure and embarrassment and humiliation. I fear being a neglectful wife and poor step-mother and failing homemaker. I fear dreaming so big that I’m lost in the orbit of a universe outside of our galaxy… floating past the point of no return where I can’t come back and live a life I once did. But most of all, I fear the audacity of believing I can change the world and feeling ridiculous for believing I can.
Him: If all those things happen, are you still alive? Can you still dream? Will your family still love you? With all due respect Bianca, I don’t think your fear is of failure. No, your greatest fear is that you will succeed. And you don’t know what to do with that.
In pursuing the calling God puts in our life, what can fear kill? Everything. Fear will inhibit and thwart us from being the person we sense in our hearts we truly are. The one who is talented and compassionate and gifted. The one who is smart and logical and able. The one who is called and predestined and confirmed.
Me: What are you dreaming of? What is stopping you?
You: _______________
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