By Kim. M.True confession: I often find myself afraid. I think of the classic book Hinds Feet on High Places. The main character in the book was named “Much Afraid.” Fear is often my first reaction to a change or new situation. It’s the first emotion I must usually deal with. I hate that! I hate living that way. The unknown - that which I can’t control - often acts as a catalyst for fear to rise up in me.
The Bible tells us many times over not to be anxious or afraid. This morning as I was reading in Matthew 8, I came to the story of the disciples in their boat being tossed by a violent storm. The fearful disciples woke Jesus from sleep (imagine that - able to sleep in a storm!) and cried out to Him for help. I was struck by Jesus’ words to the disciples in a desperate situation. He said to them, “Why are you afraid, you men of little faith?”
I have pondered that statement, turning it over in my mind. Why would Jesus say that? Jesus connected their fear with little faith. In my pondering, I thought I would see if there were any other times in the Bible where Jesus addresses fear and little faith. I discovered four situations. Each time Jesus asks about fear and anxiety and connects it with “little faith.” I am comforted by the fact that He doesn’t say “no faith;” but He does confront their “little faith.” In my search, I discovered all four of these situations have principles that apply in my life today, too.
- In Matthew 6:25-34 – There is anxiety over of the necessities of life. Will God provide what we need?
- In Matthew 8:23 - 27 – There is fear over danger: the “storms” of life that are out of my control.
- In Matthew 14:22-31 – There is fear to follow where Jesus is leading, the temptation to fear when I put my eyes on the surrounding circumstances rather than fixing my gaze on Jesus.
- Matthew 16:1-12 – There is fear when I don’t understand the greater purpose of His words and His works, when I lose the “big picture” and get bogged down in my own agenda.
In each and every one of these circumstances, those involved were afraid, worried, doubting, or anxious. And in each one of these circumstances, Jesus asks them a similar question, in some form of, “Why are you afraid, O you of little faith?”
Oh, how often I react in exactly the same way! I worry about all the same things. And when I worry, I am tempted to take my eyes off the Savior and fix my gaze on the circumstances, to play the “what if” game, to get it ALL backwards. The truth is God does not give me grace for “what if,” but He does give me grace for “what is.” When I am afraid, I must talk to myself rather than listen to myself. I must let the truth of Scripture settle my soul and counsel my heart to take every thought captive to the obedience of Christ. Christ says, “Do not be afraid. Do not fear. Do not be anxious.” How do I battle fear when my emotions want to rule over truth? Here’s how I counsel my heart:
- Know. Know God…not just know about Him. A story from a dear friend of ours illustrates this truth. When Dr. Carl Wenger left to serve in the Middle East, his daughter Ann was too young to really remember him. So while he was away, Mrs. Wenger often pointed to the portrait of Dr. Wenger that hung in their home and told little Ann, “That’s your daddy.” Ann was only two years old when her daddy returned home from service, and she was not quite sure about this man in her home. In fact, a man had never spent the night in her home that she could ever remember, so after dinner Ann was quite sure it was time for him to leave. Of course, Dr. Wenger stayed the night at home. In the morning, he and Ann were the first ones up. He sat on one end of the sofa and she sat on the other. Little Ann pointed her tiny finger to the portrait on the wall and said, “That’s my daddy.” Then she looked at Dr. Wenger and looked up at the portrait… then she knew something... she knew someone... and then she said, “That’s you.” She crawled up in her daddy’s lap and in his arms! As Dr. Wenger says, “And we have had a good thing going ever since.” See, all of a sudden she didn’t just “know about” the man in the portrait, she knew him. Do I know God or do I just know about Him? Who is God? What is He like? To know God, I need to spend time with Him to learn about Him: who is says He is, what He does, what He loves. I don’t have to fear when I know God.
- Trust. Trust that God is who He says He is and does what He says He does. Trust is a choice. Psalm 56:3 sums it up well: “When I am afraid, I will trust in You.”
- Remember. Remember His faithfulness to all generations and recount His faithfulness in the past as recorded in Scripture and evidenced in my life.
- Pray. Thank God for the gift of faith and pray that He will grow my “little faith.” In Mark 9:24, a father asked Jesus for healing for his son. Jesus tells the father that all things are possible to him who believes. The father cries out to Jesus, “I do believe; help my unbelief.” I find my heart echoes this same prayer – “Jesus, I do have faith; but help my ‘little faith.’” I pray that He would help my little faith to grow into a faith that is pleasing to Him.
How grateful I am for a Savior who is gentle, compassionate, and kind; one who teaches me that my name doesn’t have to be “Little Faith” or “Much Afraid”; one who meets me in my fearful, frail state and provides all I will ever need; a God who is not only present in every storm of life but who is in control of the storm; a God who is trustworthy and I can follow wherever He leads; a God who has a plan for my good and His glory. Who is like our God? Praise be to Him!
