Glance at Fear, Gaze at Truth: Knowing What Deserves Your Attention

Jul 28

Fear has a terrible reputation! Speakers and counselors talk about overcoming it or pushing through it. But the real challenge for you and your team isn’t avoiding fear altogether; it’s learning to discern which fears deserve your attention and which ones deserve a back seat. Furthermore, winning the battle with fear hinges on where you set your gaze...

Legitimate or Not?

In truth, not all fear is the enemy. There’s a difference between legitimate fear and what many would call a spirit of fear. Legitimate fear is grounded in reality; it alerts us to actual risks and present danger. These thoughts beneficially slow us down, sharpen our awareness, and keep us from being reckless. The spirit of fear, however, is stifling and paralyzing. Have you ever experienced fear that clouded your judgment, drained your confidence, and caused you to avoid?

Some of our fears are very counter-productive. And that’s where leadership starts to erode.

When fear builds, it competes for absolute control. It pulls your focus away from what matters most: relationships, long-term thinking, creativity, and action. Leaders who fixate on fears often become reactive instead of strategic, or guarded instead of visionary.

Where You Stare Matters

A key insight here is that focus determines direction. If you stare at a problem long enough, it grows disproportionately large. If you shift your focus intentionally onto what is true and credible, you change your internal narrative. One principle worth adopting is simple but powerful: Glance at your problems, but stare at what anchors you. For many leaders of faith, that anchor is God—His character, His promises, and His presence. What is your anchor when waves of fear arise?

There’s an old proverb that says, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.” That kind of fear isn’t about dread; it’s about reverence. It reorders priorities. When leaders place ultimate authority and trust in something or someone higher than their circumstances and perceptions, everything else recalibrates. Fear loses its grip because something else sits in the driver’s seat.

Another leadership truth: fear and gratitude don’t coexist well. When fear dominates, it breeds forgetfulness. We quickly lose sight of past victories, existing resources, and present blessings. Gratitude can restore your perspective to what is already with you, both internal and external. It sets our gaze on what is real and tangible versus what is uncertain.

Discernment

Discernment is a powerful leadership skill. Not every thought deserves agreement. Not every fear deserves authority. Leaders must ask: Is this fear grounded in truth, or is it exaggerated? Is it helping me prepare, or is it holding me back?

Left unchecked, fear will weaken us, leaving us uncertain and hesitant. But when we confront and reframe it, fear becomes a signal and crossroad wherein we refocus and anchor into deeper sources of strength.

At its core, leadership is not about the absence of fear. It’s about what or who you allow to sit on the throne of your decision-making. If you let fear sit there, it will demand your attention and envelop your vision. But if you allow something greater to capture your gaze—certainties, your mission, truth—it will enhance your capacity to lead.

The next time fear shows up, don’t just try to silence it. Evaluate it, learn from it, but don’t surrender to it.

What fears are you facing right now and how are you confronting them?

Identify a truth, certainty, or mission to gaze at before your next temptation to stare at a fear.