Fear

Certain things scare me.  I know some fear spiders, I think they’re ok.  I realize machines, noise, and vibrations can bring fear for some, I find them reassuring.  Yet snakes, water (especially the sea), heights, and relying on any man made apparatus for my safety (especially in context to the sea or heights) brings out extreme fear.  In light of how dangerous the world is, I wonder why more things don’t make the “fear” list for more people.
 
Equally I wonder what I should fear that I do not.  Do I realize how dangerous the city really is?  Do I grasp the risk in driving or flying?  Do I understand how fragile the lives in my care are?
 
It is easy to believe others have no fears.  They do, but the fears are simply different than our own.  It is as if an awareness or knowledge can carry its own set of fears, frightening those who would see, acknowledge, or understand.  When I read that “when Pilate heard this, he became even more scared,” (John 19.8) it is easy to assume the danger wasn’t real, it was simply imagined.  I wasn’t there!  I didn’t have to face the out of control emotions of a crowd thirsty for one man’s blood in death.  Yet there is danger each of us face every day, at every corner.
 
I wonder what you and I should fear.
 
Yes, we should fear and respect how fragile life is.  It is our relationships which define life – with Divinity and each other.
 
Yes, we should fear the danger all around us.  Each can catch us unaware, destroying the very things we most treasure.
 
Most of all we should fear our own arrogance and pride.  These are the two elements we always carry which can destroy life itself. 
 
In the dawn of a new morning I wake bathed in warmth, love, and assurance.  There is much to fear.  There is even more to treasure and hold onto.  You and I have a God in love with us and people who care.  We have life.