When I was little, I was afraid that there was a wolf lurking in the dark ready to pounce on me.  At night, I thought it might be under my bed ready to reach out and get me, so I would leap from the middle of the room to get into bed.  I'm not really sure when that fear went away, but being released from that fear was a good thing.  When I got older, I was afraid that I wouldn't have enough money to go to seminary, so I avoided making a decision about moving in that direction.  Then, the company that I was working for went out of business.  I found work as a driver's education instructor in the Washington, D.C. area and miraculously missed crashing with a student driver at the wheel. This convinced me that my fear of not having enough money was very short-sighted.  

There is no end of possible things to induce our fear.  Still, whenever the angels come, they say, "Don't be afraid."  Good news is coming.  The picture is bigger than your fear.  Faith is surrounding our fear with love. When we focus on what we love, it doesn't matter if we are afraid.  Our energy is directed toward appreciating what we have.