Living Fearless and Full of Faith

By: Kim Anthony

I just finished my first week of living Fearless and Full of Faith. When I looked back over these first few days, I realized that I was actually able to step into this challenge on day one! Before I continue, I need to let you know that over the years there has been a disconnect between the way I am with close friends and family and the way I carry myself publicly. Many people, who don’t know me well, get the impression that I am always very subdued and serious. Much of this may be due to the fact that I’m an introvert and have never been the “life of the party” type.

But if you could be a fly on the wall in my home, you would see a different side of me that has been reserved for safe environments; settings in which there are people I trust, who love me, flaws, silliness and all. From me sashaying across the room and jumping into my husband’s arms like a ballerina, saying “catch me!” without warning…to me breaking out into spontaneous dance to a song in my head or instigating a dance battle with my son, the private me if far from subdued. It is not uncommon for my adult sons to respond to my antics with, “Momma, I love you. You so crazy!”  

Well, on the first day of January, I was asked to be the Master of Ceremonies for an event. The planners of the occasion clearly laid out what they wanted me to do. Now there are times when the subdued side of me is warranted, but this time I had a choice. I could choose to play it safe as I usually did and give them a performance oozing with reserved professionalism…or…I could make the most of this opportunity by taking a risk and allowing a little of my wild side to be seen outside of my safe environment. The former, at it’s best, would have been reliable and good, but the latter was risky, and had the potential of being great!

After some deliberation and encouragement from my husband, to "go big or go home," I chose to step out of my comfort zone. Instead of allowing the fear of failure and the judgment of others to cause me to shrink back, I decide to put my faith in God’s ability to use the totality of my personality and gifts to be a blessing. I stepped into every challenge listed on my Fearless and Full of Faith Post (Posted on: December 31, 2017). I went BIG! I introduced the participants with full-out NBA Arena style introductions and had a blast doing it! The crowd had fun, the planners were very pleased, and I’d like to think that God smiled…or perhaps he was laughing, saying, finally, there she is!

Psalm 139:14: I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well.