Are Fear, Lust, Anger, and Pride Keeping You from God’s Plan?

Dr. Dave Gomes on faith, mental toughness, and following God’s vision

What does it mean to truly follow God’s plan for your life? And how can you recognize when fear, pride, or other distractions are getting in the way?

On this episode of The Dorsey Ross Show, I had the pleasure of sitting down with Dr. Dave Gomes for a conversation about faith, leadership, personal growth, and learning to trust God with the direction of our lives.

Dr. Dave has a unique story. He is a former professional hockey player who competed internationally, a U.S. Air Force veteran, a Christian marketing agency founder, and a sport and performance psychology expert who works with elite athletes. He is also the author of Plan to Win: How to Manage Your Fear, Lust, Anger and Pride While Building Your Christian Organization.

Our conversation explored some important lessons that apply not only to Christian leaders and professional athletes, but to anyone who wants to grow in their faith and live with greater purpose.

From Professional Hockey to Surrendering to God

Dr. Dave shared how his journey took a significant turn after a hockey injury in 1994 shattered his nose. Although he had accepted Jesus as his Lord and Savior when he was 16, that experience helped bring him to a place of greater surrender to God’s will.

His story is a reminder that sometimes the experiences we least expect can cause us to reevaluate our priorities and recognize our need for God.

Dr. Dave also spoke honestly about struggling with his self-image and confidence after his hockey career. When he prayed for God to use him, the question that challenged him was whether he was truly usable.

Through the guidance of a mentor and a commitment to learning and growing, he began preparing himself to serve in new ways.

That part of our conversation stood out to me because it reminds us that asking God to use us is only part of the journey. We must also be willing to grow, listen, and allow Him to work in our lives.

The Four Motivators That Can Get in Our Way

One of the central themes of our conversation was the concept behind Dr. Dave’s book, Plan to Win: FLAP, which stands for fear, lust, anger, and pride.

Dr. Dave explained how these four motivators can influence our decisions and distract us from the vision God has for our lives.

• Fear can keep us from stepping out in faith because we want to control the outcome.

• Lust can involve more than sexual temptation. It can also mean an unhealthy desire for possessions, power, status, or more than we need.

• Anger can take hold when people or circumstances get in the way of what we want.

• Pride can lead us to seek recognition for ourselves instead of giving God the glory.

What makes these motivators particularly challenging is that they do not always appear obvious. Sometimes we can convince ourselves that we are making a wise or responsible decision when fear is actually driving us.

Dr. Dave also discussed the spiritual responses that can help us confront these struggles: faith instead of fear, giving and love instead of selfish desire, forgiveness and patience instead of anger, and humility instead of pride.

These are not simply leadership principles. They are areas in which all of us can examine our hearts and ask God to help us grow.

Remember: Your Identity Is Not Your Accomplishments

Another important part of our conversation centered on identity.

It is easy to measure ourselves by what we accomplish, the positions we hold, the money we earn, or the things we own. We can begin to believe that our value depends on how successful we appear to others.

But our identity in Christ is not something we have to earn through performance.

Dr. Dave reminded us that God created us in His image and wants us to use our gifts and abilities to glorify Him. Rather than directing the spotlight toward ourselves, we should be willing to point it toward Jesus.

That message is especially important in a world where people are constantly comparing themselves with others and looking for approval.

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