Fear or Faith
Can you think of a time when you stood in front of an opportunity? An opportunity to act on something that might change your life. In such pivotal moments, the results may be unclear. What would the benefits be if the decision was ‘good’? What would the consequences be if the decision was ‘bad’? In either case, what would be learned or gained in life experience?
When faced with these kinds of decisions, we might waffle. We might run scenarios that end with disaster if the ‘worst’ happened. The result could be just stopping dead in our tracks. You do nothing, then feel good that you removed the risk of something going wrong but wonder if you may have missed out on something significant.
If you like where you are in life, doing nothing may be fine. You could justify not acting because moving forward seems to have too many ‘what-if’s’. What if I don’t qualify, what if I get sick, what if I change my mind later?
The real question is: Am I going to be ruled by faith or by fear?
Depending on the translation of the Bible you read, faith is mentioned at least 336 times. And we are told to “fear not” 365 times. Just think, we’re told to not be afraid one time for every day of the year! (Except for a leap year. I guess we’re on our own for that one extra day!)
Picture the gas gauge in your car. Now replace the “F” with “Faith” and the “E” with “Fear.” Where is your needle pointing? Is your life dominated more by faith or fear? That point may vary by the day of the week, how you feel at the moment or a variety of other factors. But, in general, where is your needle pointing?
When we have that opportunity, we need to ask, What am I missing out on by not moving forward? My mother said to me once while I was deciding if I should start a college program, “The time is going to pass anyway, what are you waiting for?” She helped me understand that out of all the resources we have, the one that is truly non-renewable is time. I’m glad I convinced myself (with my mom and God’s help) to lean towards faith and say yes to the college program.
Consider Abram (a.k.a., Abraham – Genesis 12) and Jonah (Jonah 1 – 2). One acted on faith and the other fear. One ended up being the “Father of a great nation” (Genesis 12:2) and the other spent time in the belly of a fish (Jonah 1:17). Was Abraham’s journey a little more pleasant than Jonah’s? Probably, at least Abraham didn’t smell like fish guts.
We may not be as faithful as Abraham or as fearful as Jonah, but I have developed the habit of asking myself, in the face of every decision I need to make: Am I more Abraham-ish or Jonah-ish right now? How can I act in faith to do what God wants from me, what my family needs from me, or what my job requires right now?
Remember, daily we will be faced with situations. Making higher quality decisions leads to higher quality results, which leads to higher quality situations for which future decisions are to be made. So again, I will ask: Where’s the needle in your gauge pointing?
“As he was talking with them, Goliath, the Philistine champion from Gath, stepped out from his lines and shouted his usual defiance, and David heard it. Whenever the Israelites saw the man, they all fled from him in great fear” (1 Samuel 17:23-24).
“For we live by faith, not by sight” (1 Corinthians 5:7).
“For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love, and self-discipline” (2 Timothy 1:7).