Something More Than Fear

20435901509_e471dc362f_z

There are a few things Jesus repeated often, as if there are a few words so essential they must be spoken again and again. Words like this: Don’t be afraid. Apparently, Jesus’ friends were prone to fear, with the powers menacing and their futures uncertain. And into these grave moments, Jesus spoke a clear instruction. Don’t be afraid.

We too are prone to fear – and the fears are often legitimate. Evil strikes at this world, and if any of are so naive as to think otherwise, the awful truth crashed upon us yet again this weekend, as it crashes upon us most every day in so many places far and near.

And yet, in the very midst of terrors, Jesus tells us to resist this compulsive urge to give ourselves over to fear. Fear takes on many guises. We may succumb to panic. We may hide, just drowning out the noise. We may go the way of machismo and beat our chest, motivated by the madness of crazed retribution. All fear. And all of this yields destruction. None of this yields life.

And to “not be afraid” does not mean that we must never feel fear, but rather that we do not succumb to it. We do not feed the fright. We choose something truer, something more powerful. It means we move toward courage. We resist the catcall of doom and ruin. “My courage is a wild dog,” says Ze Frank. “It won’t just come when I call it. I have to chase it down and hold on as tight as I can.”

And we do hold tight, clinging to an alternative possibility. We refuse to let our courage loose. And even when we must act with a boldness and ferocity (and sometimes love requires exactly this), we still refuse the fear. We hear Jesus again: Don’t be afraid.

 

2 Replies to “Something More Than Fear”

  1. Saw this on Facebook this week; maybe you did, too.
    “Worry is a cycle of inefficient thoughts swirling around a center of fear.” Corrie Ten Boom
    – I expect she was well-acquainted with worry and fear.
    Happy Thanksgiving to the Collier family. I am thankful for your writings.
    Brenda

    1. Thank you, Brenda. I think Corrie knew something about this, for sure. And happy thanksgiving to you and your family as well – and thank you for reading. I just put up a little thanks for folks just like you above…

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Top