What is the silliest thing that you’re afraid of? That’s the Icebreaker question on this week’s GNNNN. We are asking it to prompt a discussion of fears in your family. This week’s Bible story is the account where Jesus calmed the storm. He performs this miracle to remind His friends that He is God in response to their cry, “Don’t you care that we are all going to die?” (Mark 4:38).
I’ve asked some of my friends that same Icebreaker question (mostly for fun and future pranking) and their answers have been everything from rats (that is NOT silly) to balloons, bridges, birds, tapeworms, ticks and tsunamis.
As kids, all our fears seem equally valid: bees, thunderstorms, monsters. But as we mature, we diminish some and dismiss others. But some we hold onto and decide, “This one. This one is for real.”
Fear of heights, needles, snakes, and the dark are some of the most common adult phobias. But did you know that 25% of Americans fear an IRS audit (1)? An estimated 12% of American adults are afraid of clowns (2)! Strangely, according to one 2017 study, more Americans are afraid of water pollution ( 53.1%) than of dying (20.3%)(3).
Fear of dying, though. Pretty sure that one’s gonna climb the list in 2020. Trying to not catch or spread this potentially fatal virus has changed the way we shop, work, school and worship. It’s changed the way our entire society now operates. Please understand: as a young woman, I suffered from significant and paralyzing anxiety. I am super compassionate to those who live in fear or battle anxiety on a daily basis. And I know COVID-19 has certainly amped up the environment where those fears can thrive.
But let me challenge you…What if even the very real, very pervasive fear of death could be diminished for us as maturing believers? What if it we could be free from it?
I heard a challenging quote many years ago that has stuck with me and helped me. It helped me when my baby niece was diagnosed with a rare cancer. It helped me when my friend and my nephew left for military deployment. It helped me when my teenage children drove home at night from hundreds of miles away. Or traveled alone in a third world country. It helped me through the deaths of three young nephews, a dear sister-in-law, and my father. It helped to ground me during many times of worry, crisis, and grief…when the possibility of death also includes the reality of death. It has reminded me that I (and my family) am safe in God’s hands at all times and in all circumstances–even in the midst of this global pandemic.
The quote is from Stonewall Jackson, a genius Civil War general and devout Christian:
“Captain, my religious belief teaches me to feel as safe in battle as in bed. God has fixed the time for my death. I do not concern myself about that, but to be always ready, no matter when it may overtake me. Captain, that is the way all men should live, and then all would be equally brave.” (4).
Belief that our days are already numbered by God as the scripture teaches, has brought me incredible peace and stability even when the world seems dangerous or my loved ones seem to be going into “harm’s way.” If you want to live Bold and Brave, that quote will help you do it.
In the meanwhile, look out for wolves, snakeskins, cats, horse teeth, going airborne on the I-80 Interchange, getting your fingers sliced off while ice skating, and of course, don’t let the bedbugs bite.
Since the children have flesh and blood, He too shared in their humanity so that by His death He might break the power of him who holds the power of death–that is, the devil–and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death. Hebrews 2:14-15 (NIV)
With love to you and your family,
ADDITIONAL RESOURCE: A dear friend recommended a book to me that I read last fall. I promptly ordered an entire case and gave it to friends as a Christmas gift. If your world is rocked with fear and anxiety around death and dying, I highly recommend it to you. It is a short and easy read-but one of those books where you want to pause and reflect after every other paragraph. Literally life changing. Paradigm shifting. Empowering and encouraging. Remember Death-The Surprising Path to Living Hope by Matthew McCullough
WEB SOURCES: 1. Fear a tax audit by IRS? Don’t – the odds are with you 2. 20 Childhood Fears That Stick with You Until Adulthood. 3. Inc.com “Forget Dying and Public Speaking, Here’s the 47 Things Americans Fear More in 2017” 4. Stonewall Jackson Quotes