Why are you so afraid? Mark 4:40 (NIV)
Pain, Snakes and Fear – Fear Part 1
I was scrolling through Instagram when I came across a post that had the word FEAR crossed out on it, and the caption read, “what would you do if you were not afraid? Do it.”
My mind went in two directions.
Firstly, I thought of all the things I’m TERRIFIED of (NOT in any order):
– The death of my children and husband.
– Pain inflicted on my children and husband.
– Losing my family.
– Snakes.
– Financial hardship.
– Losing things that are precious to me, like gifts and heirlooms.
– Betrayal.
– War.
– Violence.
– Snakes.
– Getting sick.
– Getting a terminal diagnosis.
– My children facing hardship and heartbreak.
– And, snakes.
I hate snakes.
Secondly, I thought of all the times fear has helped me. I fear getting hit by a car, so I look both ways before crossing the street. I fear missing out on important life moments, so I get off the couch and make myself take action on goals and relationships. And more. Sometimes fear has made me take positive steps in the right direction.
Fear and pain are necessary for our lives. Pain warns our bodies and minds that something dangerous is happening to us. I once watched a documentary about a little girl who literally could not feel pain. Her life was in constant danger. She’d put her hands on the stove without realising they were burning, she would get deep cuts in her arms and legs without realising the danger of running into things. Her inability to feel pain compromised her safety every single day. On one of my favourite podcasts, NPR’s Invisibilia, they followed the story of a woman who literally could not feel fear. Like the young girl who couldn’t feel pain, her fearlessness put her in great danger every single day. They have to keep her protected and anonymous so that people don’t take advantage of her and so that she can't put herself unknowingly in harm's way.
In the Bible, there seems to be a dualism to fear. God often said, “Do not be afraid, I am with you.” THEN, the great wisdom writers and prophets said things like, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.” We've all heard sermons and read blogs and spoken with people who promote this “God fear” to be a controlling mechanism, something to keep us humbled and surrendered and fearful of the wrath of God. Do we approach God with fear and trembling? OR can we come boldly into his presence?
We are not to live in fear, but we should fear God? Is it the same kind of fear? Do we just replace one fear with the other? Redirect it?
Mark (in Mark 4) records a time when Jesus had been speaking to people all day, and when the crowd had dispersed, he asked his disciples to take him to the other side of the lake. While on that journey, the disciples, all crammed into a tiny boat, were set upon by a terrifying storm. They panicked and started crying out for help, but their saviour lay sleeping on a cushion in the front of the boat. At peace. Undisturbed.
When the disciples were finally able to wake up their slumbering messiah, he looked at them and said, “Why are you afraid?”
Why ARE we so afraid? Apart from the fact that there does seem to be much to fear in this word, why do we allow fear to control us as we do? Maybe the first directive of Jesus that we need to heed is not, “Do not fear” but rather, “Come, let us cross to the other side.”
Jesus doesn’t cancel our fears; he enables us to cross through and beyond them.
Go to Part 2 – The Other Side
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