Welcome to the roaring twenties of the twenty-first century. As we enter the third decade of this century, I am reminded that 1999 ended in great fear over the Y2K bug. Then, in 2009, we found ourselves in a global economic crisis. In contrast, we left 2019 somewhat confident that good days are ahead and with cautious optimism for the future. This has caused me to ponder the role of faith in the face of fear.
Humanly speaking, fear is the fight or flight mechanism that protects us from our enemies and from danger. It is the genetic component in our drive to survive. Despite the bad reputation that fear has in our society, it is actually healthy and the sign of real courage. General Swartzkoph once said that the only person who scares him was a man who was never afraid. Another American icon, John Wayne once said, “courage is being scared to death and saddling up anyway.”
Likewise, the Bible tells us that fear is the beginning of knowledge and wisdom. Only a fool lacks fear. You see, fear is not a lack of faith. Like any other emotion, it warns us of danger. It is meant to trigger a response of prayer, of seeking God’s face for what is ahead of us. Sometimes, God tells us to run and hide- like he did with David, when King Saul sought his life. Sometimes, God calls us to stand- like he did with Gideon, while facing overwhelming odds. It is important that no matter how great the army, or how small, the difference between victory and failure was always following the leading of God. When men felt strong, but broke faith with God, in Joshua 7, the armies of Israel failed, despite being more numerous than the armies of Ai. The issue wasn’t if the odds were in their favor, but whether they were in favor with God.
So as we look toward this next decade, with a national election looming large, huge cultural shifts having occupied so much of our attention in the past decade, it is important that our confidence is grounded not in our social or cultural norms, or even in our economic strength, but in the living God. Faith is not the absence of fear, nor is it the good vibes we get when things are going our way. It is confidence that God will not abandon us, whatever the circumstances, good or bad.
With great faith, I am looking forward to 2020 with you- confident that God is at work among us.
Grace and peace,
Hal
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