What happens when fear hits you so hard that you start questioning your faith? In this raw and honest episode of Joy in the Junk, Ashlee and Blair talk about fear, trauma, prayer, spiritual warfare, and what it really means to trust God when life gets scary. After Blair receives a frightening call about her dad being attacked by dogs, she finds herself overwhelmed by emotions and struggling with guilt over being afraid. Did she have a lack of faith—or was she simply experiencing a very human response to something traumatic? Together, they dig into what Scripture says about fear, God’s presence in trouble, and learning to surrender our emotions to Him. But the conversation takes an even deeper turn as they dive into Galatians 5 and the works of the flesh versus the fruit of the Spirit. Are Christians sometimes giving the devil too much credit for things that are actually coming from our own flesh? What role does spiritual warfare play in our struggles with anger, jealousy, selfish ambition, temptation, and other sinful desires? And what does it look like to intentionally walk in the Spirit? Ashlee and Blair also tackle some uncomfortable but important questions about Christian accountability, spiritual maturity, conviction, truth in love, and the responsibility believers have to examine their hearts. They talk about surrounding ourselves with people who love us enough to tell us the truth—even when we don’t want to hear it—and why our freedom in Christ is never an excuse to continue living in sin. Along the way, they talk about answered prayer, God’s sovereignty, the armor of God, the power of the Holy Spirit, overcoming shame, and learning to recognize when God is using difficult circumstances to get our attention. And because this is Joy in the Junk, there’s plenty of laughter mixed in with the hard conversations—including Publix commercials, crying over everything, sweat mustaches, ringing ears, traumatized puppies, and the ever-important question: What’s your junk? In this episode: ● Fear vs. faith and trusting God in difficult circumstances ● How to respond to trauma without drowning in guilt ● “Fear asks, ‘What if?’ Faith asks, ‘What if God?’” ● God as our refuge and strength — Psalm 46:1 ● The works of the flesh vs. the fruit of the Spirit ● Galatians 5 and walking in the Spirit ● Are we blaming the devil for our own fleshly choices? ● Spiritual warfare and the enemy’s desire to steal our attention ● The temptation to excuse sin instead of taking responsibility ● 1 Corinthians 10:13 and God’s way of escape ● The armor of God and the belt of truth ● The importance of checking your heart ● Christian accountability and spiritual maturity ● Speaking truth in love ● Why we need friends who will tell us the hard truth ● Freedom in Christ and the danger of using grace as an excuse to sin ● The power and presence of the Holy Spirit ● Answered prayer and recognizing God’s hand in the middle of hard circumstances ● Moving beyond shame and learning from your past ● Trusting God when you don’t understand what He’s doing Scriptures discussed: Galatians 5:16–25, Psalm 46:1, 1 Corinthians 10:13, Ephesians 6:10–18, Proverbs 18:21, and other passages about fear, faith, spiritual warfare, accountability, and walking in the Spirit. If you’ve ever wondered whether your struggle is spiritual warfare, your own flesh, fear, or simply being human, this conversation will give you plenty to think about. More importantly, it will point you back to the One who promises that He is with you, faithful, and never going to leave you or forsake you. Joy in the Junk is a Christian podcast for women who are trying to follow Jesus in the middle of real life—with plenty of Scripture, honest conversations, laughter, messy moments, and the reminder that even in the junk, there is still joy. Thank you for being at our table. Don't forget to follow us on facebook and subscribe to our YouTube channel for our podcast videos!
