He plays video games with people across the country he doesn’t know… He hardly knows three people in each class he is in… He still watches cartoons… His mom drives him everywhere… He doesn’t have armpit hair… He has the intelligence level of a freshman in high school… because HE IS A FRESHMAN IN HIGH SCHOOL… And yet you fear him. You are an adult, with lots of friends, likely have a car, and a job, and a high school diploma (or more), and yet a scrawny Hurley t-shirt armpit-hairless wearing 14 year old gives you a look that says “what are YOU doing here?” And you are frozen right there in your steps. This is scarier than the best that Hollywood can pump out during Halloween right?
Nope, but it can feel that way. I can remember purposely strolling up by the gym at my high school to say hi to a kid a barely knew, meanwhile his friends all gave me the crazy-eye-what-are-you-doing-here look. Fast forward a few years and most of those friends came to club and some met Christ. It is worth it, but in the moment we can often be frozen by fear.
Here are some tips to conquer fear in contact work:
1. Pray, before you go, while you are there, and afterward.
2. Go in pairs, this makes it much easier, but don’t not go just because someone won’t join you.
3. Recite scripture in your head while you do contact work. For example Isaiah 41:10, or 1 Thes. 2:8.
4. Have a plan. I usually make a “map” in my head of where I will go during contact work. It helps me be confident that I belong and I am not just wandering aimlessly.
5. Dwell on the potential. Look at a kid and say to yourself, that kid could be a world-changer for Christ.
6. Pick a kid’s name that you know in the past or present, say “Luke”. Then repeat in your head, “Luke is worth it.”
7. Think about the “worst case” scenario. Is it really that bad? No.
What do you do to conquer fear in contact work?
Do you like YLHelp? Spread the word: email | twitter | facebook