Fear

Fear is a vicious monster. It sprouts wings. It breathes fire. It threatens death and destruction whenever and wherever it appears. None of us are immune to its power. None of us escape its impact in our lives.

Fear has many forms- fear of man, fear of loss, fear of failure, fear of abandonment, fear of war, fear of poverty, of what other will think, and the list goes on. The bible even describes a fear of fear.

I know people who live in Iowa who are afraid of whales. Imagine that. They have never seen a whale nor been to the ocean, but their fears are real.

I've talked to others who are afraid to go out of their homes. They have become prisoners of their own imaginations, housebound because of fear.

I'm sure you could tell me stories of your fears as well. They are part of each of our lives. Fear is one of the results of man's fallen state. In fact, when God shows up after the fall his first question to man, "Where are you?" brought this response, "I hid because I was afraid."

The clinical name for fear is phobia. We now have phobias for everything and there is good reason to be afraid. We are a fearful creature. The human being, both man and woman, struggle with fears their entire life. It affects us mentally, physically and socially. It weaves it's threads through all we are and think.

When fear comes over us it feels like a panic attack, blood rushing to or from our head, heart racing, thoughts confused, it affects everything when it happens. Fear is that dragon that suddenly changes everything. It affects us all. None are immune to its power.

In the bible the topic of fear is addressed often and clearly. The angels have to introduce each visit with man with this caveat, "Fear not...." One of the things I know about fear is that it betrays all we know about God and reality, it happens...like that fire breathing dragon...when we least expect it, but it happens no matter how long you have walked with God.

Why this topic? Because fear struck me today. A situation happened that had no reason for fear, but fear rose and my body responded. I thought, how amazing that I would be afraid when I know no reason to fear. In that moment I thought, Why am I afraid? What caused this? Why is fear part of this situation? It made me revisit what I know about God. You see, it's what I know about God that will dispel fear. Fear is a focus on ME, the solution? an intentional focus on God. More about that another time.

The topic of fear is in the bible more than 300 times. Some, to be sure, simply describe a response, but many give us help and direction. Let me mention just one here. I think it's that simple to put this dragon to flight. Here it is,

^{1 Peter 5:7} Cast all your anxiety (fear) on him because he cares for you.

There it is. Fear has a solution, it's a big God. IF he is who he says he is (and he is) and IF he cares for me (and he does) THEN I can give him my fears and worries and trust him to take care of me. God is the ultimate dragon slayer. He's been dealing with these things since he made us. He is able and willing to help, so do not be afraid.