On the Other Side of Fear

HUNTINGTON, Indiana, October 21, 2016 – Many Catholics are locked in fear…of what is, what might be, what was, and what may never happen. They live paralyzed, unable to pass through the door of God’s providence.

But what bestselling author and mother of seven, Hallie Lord, shares is fear is really the apprehension to live according to God’s will rather than one’s own. Fear hangs on, rather than lets go; engineers rather than acquiesces; avoids rather than engages; agonizes rather than trusts.

On the Other Side of Fear: How I Found Peace (Our Sunday Visitor, 2016) is Hallie’s collection of her own life stories – on marriage, financial hardship, fertility, living in strange new towns, health scares, worrying what people think, and much more – of learning to live in God’s will, without fear of the unknown, the untested, and the unexpected, because adverse circumstances are often unavoidable and inner peace contingent on how one responds to the matter.

“Fear paints vivid pictures of problems without solutions, sorrow without relief, mortification without mercy, and life without joy,” says Lord. “It tells us there’s no hope, and that our burdens are too heavy for any one person to endure.” These may be compelling intimidators, but ‘compelling’ isn’t synonymous with ‘true’, she says.

On the Other Side of Fear is Hallie’s own journey -- of how she looked fear in the face and discovered that its power is an illusion, dissipated when held up to the light of God. The 14 chapters, each containing a unique lesson, can stand alone or be read as a continuing progression. The book helps readers move forward conquering their own fears with the lifelong reinforcements of discipline, fortitude, and faith.