This past Monday night at Young Life club, we discussed something that has never passed through my mind before: living a life full of love versus a life full of fear.

No matter where you are or what you are doing, fear is inevitable. It is the shadow that lingers over the life-long desire to live in a state of euphoria. You cannot escape it. You cannot run from it. Fear chases after you like an innocent puppy running in terror from a rambunctious child.

In your life, the number of paltry fears that consume your thoughts each and every day may often outweigh the number of times you see the valuable and positive aspects surrounding your life. Whether it be the fear of the future, fear of failure, or fear of standing out, every small, frivolous fear has the power to strip the feelings of love and happiness from your mind.

As life becomes busier and there is less time to truly live the way you dream to, you forget the amount of love that your life is meant to be focused on. The way you spend each day may be worrying about your next test or stressing over an issue weighing on your mind, but that is not how life is meant to be. Life should not be about living from fear to fear but knowing that you are loved and your life has the potential to be filled with all that you wish for.

If you look around you, you will see people who love you and care about you. Those people are not simply placed into your life for no apparent reason. They are there to bring you joy and slowly remove from your thoughts the fears that begin to control every move you make.

Often times, people simply fear being themselves. The fear of not being conformed with the rest of society is enough to make many people shelter themselves from what their true personality is. People worry too much about wearing the right clothes, performing with perfection, and blending in with the rest of their peers, but when you stop to look at your loved ones who want to see you be unique, you can learn that life isn’t always about being absolutely perfect.

There are copious new fears introduced into your life as each day of the week passes by. Living a dark and somber lifestyle through your fears is an easy trap that you may find yourself struggling to stay away from, but as new challenges arise, look to the ones who love you to remember who you truly are. They will always be there waiting for you to stop living through your fears and start living through their love.