Living Braver has been a journey. As I recognized fear had become my default reaction to difficulties I knew there must be a better way.
Fear hadn’t always been such a close companion. Through a barrage of situations spanning just a few years, it sneakily crept in. As I set out on this journey my goal wasn’t so much to focus on fear but its opposite: bravery.
Perhaps the way to not holding my breath or getting lost in ‘what-ifs’ was to find brave steps leading to freedom.
That’s what the past eighteen months have explored. At first these were basic baby steps. As I discovered fear and brave didn’t have as much to do with me as they did with my relationship with God, faith steps emerged.
Will there ever be a day you and I are never afraid? We all have doubts, anxieties, worries. What we’ve discovered together is that it isn’t the absence of the trials of life. It’s not a new found I can handle this. It is the ever present Holy Spirit and our totally relying on a Father who can handle it all.
“Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you.” (1Peter 5:7 NIV)
When my focus began to be more and more about ‘this isn’t all there is’ and that no person, no difficulty, no injustice – nothing – can touch my eternity, finally a new perspective came.
Suddenly it seemed liked clouds parted and all the wonders of God’s promises burst forth and crowded each week’s writings with hope. A hope that will never fade, spoil, or perish. A true treasure.
“An inheritance that can never perish, spoil, or fade – kept in heaven for you.” (1Peter 1:4 NIV)
My prayer is that this journey has helped you, pointed your vision upward to where your help comes from. If I can pray for you or share with you, please email me.
You can continue to read my wanderings over at my original site: http://parisrenae.com. In the near future change will be coming to that site with a fresh new look. I would love to have you ‘follow me’ there. May the God of all grace and peace guard your hearts and your minds, Paris Renae
living braver 
May 27, 2016 at 8:40 am
Thank you for all of your words of encouragement and bringing to light what many of us don’t want to admit to ~ we’re scared! Your weekly blog has been uplifting and has drawn me closer to God and His mighty strength. I’m going to continue enjoying “hearing” from you on your other blog.
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May 29, 2016 at 6:20 am
Your blog was a reminder how close God can be when we recognize our need in every circumstance. He’s one breath away. I think I’ll always suffer the discomfort of fear. I pray I will also call on His help. Thank you for the lessons on living brave.
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June 8, 2016 at 12:38 pm
You are such an uplifting, supportive, like-hearted friend. I am thankful for your words which reflect Jesus and speak courage to me. I look forward to seeing how God is leading you in new ways.
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July 19, 2017 at 8:13 pm
Bounce rate up, time on site down, pages per visit down, avg. time on page down…How on earth am I supposed to compare the stsi?sttcai?? Not to mention I've spent hours on figuring out if there is something wrong with my servers or code.Google, you are changing into second Microsoft – and that is not a compliment.
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July 19, 2017 at 8:15 pm
Notera dock att samhället nu blivit så seselarikurat att till och med hädelse kommit att handla om människan och inte om Gud. Blasfemi brukade vara att smäda Gud, nu definieras det som uttalanden som kan väcka anstöt hos människor med en viss tro.Jag skulle säga att vi kommit väldigt långt från medeltiden.
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