Dealing With Fear

There seem to be more things to fear lately than ever before. With ISIS decapitating hapless Westerners and the Ebola outbreak both at the forefront of the news, death and destruction are on every side. I find myself thinking, what would happen if my family was abducted by extremists? Or, what would happen if we contracted the Ebola virus?  

Insurgents in Northern Iraq

But are there more dangers now than ever before?

Although these things weigh heavily on our minds there is nothing new under the sun. The Black Death and the persecution of Christians by the Roman Empire are good examples of darker times in history. And more recently, consider the Cuban missile crisis and the Cold War.

I was struck recently by a movie quote which I found extremely helpful in this regard: 

"Only by fear of God can we overcome fear of war."

One of the characters in the movie, a Christian, said this in response to a reporter asking about potential war with the USSR. This little sentence can be a great help to us when we are tempted to fear.  The last word of that quote could be anything; ISIS, Ebola, recession, cancer, abduction, or whatever your greatest fear may be.

Only by rightly fearing God can we overcome the various fears we encounter in this life.

[And by the way, for a really good movie to enjoy with your family, check out Gold Through the Fire. The quote came from this movie.]