I love to travel. I love seeing new places. Experiencing new cultures. Meeting new people. Learning new languages. I love nice hotels (hello! some of them have pillow menus… who knew such a wonder existed?).

There is, however, one thing about travel that I do not love.

I do not love to fly.

As much as I try to get lost in the beauty of billowing white clouds and bright blue skies, I often find myself on the verge of panic as the plane launches off the ground. Fear of hurtling towards the earth plaguing my thoughts as the overwhelming sense of helplessness invades my mind. Let me tell you, it is not pretty. Take off usually includes me white-knuckling the arm rest or the hand of the unsuspecting person sitting next to me who “won” the seat selection lottery.

So… this poses a rather large problem for me.

My dreams include travel for all the reasons I listed above and many, many others. On top of that my job requires that I travel several times a year (an opportunity that I usually jump at, until I’m sitting in the aforementioned airplane seat holding hands with a stranger).

What’s a girl to do?

I decided a year or so ago that I was not going to allow this fear to control me or make me miss out on a rather large part of my purpose and destiny. I wish I could say that it was as simple as that, but it’s not. That being said, there are a couple of things that I’ve learned that are helping me overcome:

1. DECIDE – I know I just said it’s not as simple as a decision, but it has to start with one. You have to DECIDE that what is on the other side of your fear is worth the discomfort of facing it in the here and now.

2. FIND THE TRUTH – Fear is a notorious liar. I once heard it described as a drunk uncle (which inevitably makes me thing of the SNL skit). It takes truth and twists it. It wildly distorts reality and makes you lose sight of the horizon. You have to find the truth. For me, this means reminding myself of how many flights take off and land on a daily basis around the world without incident. On top of that, I remind myself that the purpose of my life exists beyond that one short flight.

3. GET SOME TOOLS – Like I mentioned above, fear can make you question which way is up. You’ve got to find your bottom line. What is unshakeable? I have found scripture verses that I will often repeat to myself in those moments where I find myself succumbing to panic. Here’s a few of my favorites…

“God has not give me (make it personal!) a spirit of fear, but of power, love and a sound mind” 2 Tim. 1:7 (The crazies aren’t from God!)

“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” Jer. 29:11 (Thank the Lord he has a plan for me on the other side of whatever I might be facing)

“You will keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you.” Is. 26:3 (I’d like to sign up for perfect peace please)

4. IMAGINE THE BEST – Don’t waste your time meditating on the what-if. I heard it said recently that worry is a waste of your imagination. Use your God-given imagination to focus on all the wonderful possibilities that might await you. Instead of envisioning worst-case scenarios, start thinking about best case scenarios. What if I get seated next to Ricky Martin? Hello?!?! I’ll hold your hand thank you very much.

5. GO FOR IT – Sometimes you’ve just got to put on your big girl panties and do it anyways. Take a chance. Risk more. Jump. Yes, you might still feel fearful, but you know what, the more you ignore that voice and go for it, the quieter that voice will become. You decide. Fear does not get to win.

At the end of the day, your future, your dreams, and your personalized pillow menu matter so much more. Don’t miss out because you feel fearful.