For most of my life, I’ve lived with a fear of flying. I would medicate before traveling because I had trouble breathing during the flight. This fear is problematic for an itinerant speaker! If you experience aerophobia, you know what I’m talking about here. It’s a miserable and crippling experience. On one of my flights, I was sitting next to a young girl when we started to experience intense turbulence. I clenched my fists and held on to my seat. I was so nervous! I looked over at this young girl and saw that she was smiling, laughing, and full of joy. I finally asked her, “Were you not nervous?” She quickly responded, “Oh no, this was so much fun! My dad is the pilot. I’m on a trip with my dad!”

The young girl’s response struck me. The turbulence didn’t bother her because she knew her dad’s skillset and was confident in his ability to fly the plane, no matter how bumpy it got! The young girl knew that her dad was going to take care of her. My healing journey started soon after this experience. For the past ten years, I have been able to fly without fear of heights or turbulence because I changed my perspective.

For many years, I had a view of God that didn’t look like Jesus. When there was a sin issue in my life or I did something wrong, I experienced a God who turned away from me because He was Holy and couldn’t be near me in my unholiness. I want to challenge you to take a moment and journal the following questions:

What is your perspective of God? What we see shapes who we are, and often, how we see God is how we view ourselves. Do you trust Him? Does He love you unconditionally? Write down the things you believe to be true about God and His nature.

Is there anything on your list that does not look like Jesus? Jesus is perfect theology. In John 14:9, Jesus speaks to Phillip, “If you have seen Me, you have seen the Father.” Jesus came to give us a proper perspective of God and what He is like. Jesus is the best example for our identity journeys. Whether it’s fear, unforgiveness, bitterness, or anything else, God isn’t judging you. He’s looking at you with the most loving eyes, waiting to take those things from you and destroy them once and for all.

Once I identified my improper perspectives, I repented from thinking in a way that didn’t glorify God. We often spend time fearing a future that will never happen. Reflect on what God says. Start visualizing positive outcomes. Identify what’s causing the fear, and spend time discovering the truth. Perhaps you’ve had things spoken over you—by yourself or others—that have skewed your way of thinking. Identify and renounce the lie, and prophesy the truth about your vision.

In my daily routine these days, I spend a short time watching the news and focus my efforts on Kingdom realities and solutions. If your primary input is fear, it’s difficult to see things from a higher point of view. God’s lens is never fearful (2 Tim 1:7).

What if the endemic problem in the world is not the problem itself–persecution, terrorism, poverty–but rather that people need to step into their truest identities as sons and daughters of glory. People who unabashedly, unapologetically walk in their destinies, master their skillset, and flow in a convergence of love, power, and wisdom.