Lessons I learned from Taekwondo Part 4

4. No fear in fear

I never miss trainings, rain or shine, healthy or sick (now that I'm a mummy, I know it's actually very irresponsible for me to do this as I'm spreading the virus around. Stay at home if you are sick!)
I enjoyed all my trainings until the moment I was sitting on the bench, waiting for my turn to fight. Fear crept in and I felt a sudden urge to turn and take leave. No, I do not want to fight anymore,I'm scared. I want to go home!

Well maybe the tkd experts who are reading this are laughing at me. Maybe they don't even know what fear is! I'm not afraid to admit that I'm scared. But the important thing is what happened thereafter, did I continue to fight or did I really run off?

The point I want to make is we do not have to be ashamed that we are in fear. The important thing is how we manage fear. Did we let fear cripple us? Or did we let it propel us to greater heights? Well, there were times I lost, I feared because my opponent looked aggressive. I feared because I have lost to my opponent the previous tournament. Those times,I have lost the battle even before I start.

Sources of Fear

Fear stems from 2 sources,lack of confidence and fear for the unknown.

I used to have fear in driving. The idea of me handling this one big machine on the road gives me butterflies in my stomach.Moreover, my driving skills would endanger other people's lifes. Even before I start,I would have nightmares of drivers honking me because I failed to park my car into the parking lot after numerous attempts. And what about the gantry? What if it just refuse to open and cars are lining up behind me??!!!So I did not touch the steering wheel for 10 + years after getting my licence.

To be able to ferry my mother and boys around is the main motivation factor for me to start driving. How do I conquer this fear? Since my fear exists because of a lack of confidence in my driving skills,I would need to brush it up with my hubby's help. When I have done my part,I leave my safety in God's Hands by saying a prayer everytime before I set off.This really does wonders!

What about fear for examinations? We should have no fear for it if we did our part by revising well,instead we would look forward to seeing how well we fare. I always tell my pupils to be 120% prepared so that even when their nervousness affects their performance,they will still be performing up to their usual 100% standard.

My elder boy fears the unknown monsters in the dark.Adult fears about demons and ghosts which do not exists.

How to conquer Fear

For us to conquer fear,we should first find their sources and work out the solutions accordingly. 

Let us learn from Mary, the mother of Jesus. How does she feel when she first knew that God had chosen her to be the mother of Jesus and that she would still be a virgin when she was pregnant? She feared!

Luke 1: 29
But when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and considered what manner of greeting this was

But did Mary run away? Did she take another day to consider? Did she ask "Why me?" Let us look at what she said.

Luke 1: 34
Then Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I do not know a man?”

Mary asked "How" instead of asking "Why", she wanted to know more about the situation so that she can better cope with it. And eventually, she conquered fear with great faith in the Lord.

Luke 1: 38
Then Mary said, “Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her.

Fear for Death

I assume most of us fear death. I have been fearing death since I was a kindergarten kid, ever since I attended my cousin's funeral who passed away because of her congenital heart condition at a tender young age.

Because of my fear for death,I wanted very much to find out where I will go after I died. Have you ever wonder about it as well? Perhaps it is time for you to find out more about it. 

We always think that we're protecting ourselves well when we buy numerous insurance plans. If God is willing, some people might not even have a chance of claiming their insurances.

But then what about our souls? Have we bought "insurance plans" for our souls? This is even more important because death happens with a 100% probability. In fact, life starts after death, eternal life. 

We are just sojourners on earth. 1 Pet 2:11

Or maybe you believe that we ceased to exist after death. But how can that be? There must be a reason for our beginnings. If our existence is accidental, then our whole life will be quite meaningless and nothing we do seems to matter. It is our responsibility to find out the answer. 

Death is a beginning, not the end. So, do make full use of 2016 to ponder about this matter.

I will end off with a quote from CS Lewis on atheism.

"Supposing there was no intelligence behind the universe, no creative mind. In that case, nobody designed my brain for the purpose of thinking. It is merely that when the atoms inside my skull happen, for physical or chemical reasons, to arrange themselves in a certain way, this gives me, as a by-product, the sensation I call thought. 

But, if so, how can I trust my own thinking to be true? It's like upsetting a milk jug and hoping that the way it splashes itself will give you a map of London. 

But if I can't trust my own thinking, of course I can't trust the arguments leading to Atheism, and therefore have no reason to be an Atheist, or anything else. 

Unless I believe in God, I cannot believe in thought: so I can never use thought to disbelieve in God."