Fear Factor

1 John 4:18 (New King James Version)

18 There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment.

I don't think I have any fears that are uncommon to man(kind). I'm afraid of heights. I'm afraid of enclosed spaces. So by default, I'm afraid of flying. I'm afraid of the dark. Just ask my son.

A few weeks ago we arrived home quite late at night. He started to run into the house before me when I stopped him. The conversation went something like this...

Why did you stop me?
I don't want to be out here alone.
What are you afraid of?
Bigfoot
Silence...
I don't recall any bigfoot sightings in our state.

By that time, I'd caught up with him and we were indoors where it was safe and sound, where the lights were on and the darkness was on the other side of the door. Fortunately, I didn't have to respond any further. Before you think I'm completely clueless, we do live on the edge of a forest. I have to stop reading so many Peretti novels.

I have been in situations where the reality is frightening, where I've awakened in the morning and hoped I'd dreamed the bad circumstances but they were there...the job loss, the diagnosis, the loss of a baby, having to sell our home, living in a strange city with no friends, no income for a year, lots of reasons to be afraid.

There were a lot of scriptures I held onto during these times. The one above was my most constant. Perfect love casts out fear. I don't love perfectly. He loves perfectly...so I don't have to fear.