How to Avoid Intimidation

If you as an individual are to achieve what the Lord desires for you the following things need to be kept in mind.

Don’t listen to pessimists. They were defeated in their minds and therefore, unwilling to even make an effort.  That is where most people lose their biggest battle.  The “I can’t do it” complex defeats many people.

Who is your biggest opponent?  Who defeats most of your good ideas?  “You” are your own worst enemy.  The “It won’t work for me” syndrome causes many good ideas to be stillborn, dead on arrival.

A U.S. Chamber of Commerce study made in a recent year revealed that 48.3% of the people who ventured into business on their own went out of business in one year.  Dr. Dorothy Stanton was given a government grant to study the causes why.  After months of study she reported that 85% of all businesses failed because of “anticipated failure.”

Pessimistic people going into a task have failure built in. That is, it is built into their thinking.

Some have a size syndrome that causes failure. Size is relative. A teen walking in a mall with a seven foot college basketball player heard a passerby say, “I wonder how tall he is?” The teen turned and said, “I’m 5’ 4.”  

Two individuals heard the story of David and Goliath including their size. One responded thinking look how much bigger Goliath is than David. The other said, look how much bigger the God of David is than Goliath.

Look at life through God’s lenses. See things as He sees them. He will never give you a task to do that is bigger than the grace He will give you to do it. 

To be all you can be, listen to realists. Dr. Carl Roger spent years engaged in an interesting study.  He researched the question of what makes people succeed.   Why do winners win?  His conclusion is significant. He discovered an amazing secret:  Winners are never surprised to win! They have confidence.  That being true, it must conversely be true that losers are never surprised to lose.

For the Christian, there is an added dimension. A pessimist and an optimist see the same thing, but reach opposite conclusions. Don’t get infected by negative thoughts. 

The God factor in matters changes the equation. Prayerfully seek His mind regarding all you undertake. Once you are persuaded what His will is, optimistically throw yourself into it with reckless abandonment praying all the while, “I believe. Thy will be done.”