Imagine you are facing your greatest fear. Maybe it is imminent danger. Maybe it is impending doom of illness or being alone or overwhelming circumstances. There are a many things happening in our world today causing people fear. Reading the news headlines can instill a measure of fear when we see violence, terror and suffering. And the more vulnerable we feel, the more fear rises within us.
What happens when we are afraid? We have probably read about the fight or flight response of animals when they are cornered. People are sometimes the same way. We use our fear to take the offensive and fight back. Or we may take the defensive response and run away from it or hide.
Oftentimes, people in the Bible are put on this pedestal and we think of them as less human or having less than real lives like we do. When I think of Abraham or Moses, Joshua or David or even Peter and Paul, I used to think of these men as super-saints; you know, the kind of guys that knew God so well that nothing scared them and nothing bothered them. They were just men of great faith.
But then I started really reading their stories, really looking at their struggles, their failures, their faith in the nitty gritty times of their lives. In one sense, they fell off my super-spiritual pedestal. I discovered how human and flawed and spiritually weak they often were in many circumstances of their lives. Rather than always going out there like David before Goliath with great confidence in God to fight for them, they were often afraid. They were filled with trepidation and reservations and apprehensions and sometimes, they just wanted to crawl in a hole and hide. David spoke of terror, fear, trembling and horror. And he said in Psalm 55:6, ”Oh, that I had the wings of a dove! I would fly away and be at rest — I would flee far away…”
It struck me as I read about person after person in Scripture that they feared. But God spoke to these “spiritual giants,” saying, “Do not be afraid. I am with you.” He said it to Abraham. He said it to Ishmael’s mom, Hagar and Isaac when they were homeless; and to Jacob when he was fearful of traveling in his old age. He said it to Joshua after Moses died and he had some big shoes to fill to lead the Israelites into the Promised Land. He said it over and over to David who struggled with enemies. And Jesus said it to his disciples as they faced overwhelming odds. In the New Testament Gospel of John, Jesus promised the disciples they would receive the Holy Spirit to be with them always. Jesus said, “But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.” (John 14:26-27)
When we watch TV or read the newspaper or listen to the commentators, we may get this sense of foreboding, that we are helpless to change the scary things happening in our world, in our nation, even in our own city. Many are concerned about the rise of crime in our own city, where fear comes closer to home. But our hope is in God. God knows our fears and offers us Himself to give us strength, comfort, peace and assurance. He said, “I am with you. Do not be afraid.”
I remember, as a young boy, walking home in the dark. For a brief time, I was walking alone and the sounds and shadows of the night scared me to near panic. I was sure the boogie man was going to get me. Then suddenly, my dad was walking alongside me and everything was okay. His presence made all the difference. I was no longer afraid. God desires to walk alongside us, especially when we are afraid. “Do not be afraid for I am with you.”
• Dan Wiese is the pastor of the Church of the Nazarene.
