imagine your life without fear. imagine your life wholy untouched by angst. what if faith, not fear, was your default reaction to threats?envision a day, just one day, absent the dread of failure, rejection and calamity.

can you imagine a life with no fear?

these are just the first few words of max lucado's powerful new book fearless. this book arrived at my door at just the perfect time - a time in which most days, when left to my own thoughts and reasons, i feel scared and full of fear. but the rhythm and pacing of the words in this book brought an instant calmness and peace, like i was reading sweet words written just for me.

i loved the broad topics that max lucado covers in the book - such as the fear of not protecting my kids, and the fear of worst-case scenarios, and the fear of violence, and the fear of what's next, each chapter was covered in simple reminders of truth, and personal stories, and scripture just right for that moment. but the chapter that inspired me the most was the very first chapter simply titled "why are we afraid?"

as i read this chapter, on what motivates our fear, i had many thoughts about myself as a leader in children's ministry, and my most common fears that run alongside my career. often, when i'm most honest my fears can be tracked down to feeling insecure, the fear that in the end when all is said and done, those who knew me best will simply say, "she wasn't good enough."

but i can't live and be my best, day to day, with this fear. instead i'm taking a step towards imaging my life without fear. today i'm imagining my life without fear of what my collegues will think of me, and without fear that i'll make the wrong decision, and without fear that people will speak poorly about me, and without fear that i'm not the best person for this job.

and instead i'm imagining my life with freedom to be myself, and peace to enjoy life, and calmness to sit still and look at those i love around me, and energy to use my skills to make the world a different place for kids.

today i am fearless.