This post is on “9-11,” a day that brings fear to the heart of any person who remembers that day in American history. Like Pearl Harbor to the “Greatest Generation,” September 11, 2001 changed our culture forever. And every year since, the anniversary brings increased threats of terrorism against the United States. We became a nation terrorized that day, mission accomplished by the terrorists. Or was it?
There are many kinds of fear. Terror is an intense form of fear often brought on by trauma. As I looked for a suitable photo for this post I found myself in tears as I remembered watching TV as people jumped over 100 stories, choosing to die on impact than by fire. Eventually the networks thought better about what to show, but I’ll never forget.
On that day my then 13-year-old son wanted to enlist in the military. Too young to be accepted, he later joined ROTC (Reserve Officer Training Corp) in college, going on to serve two tours in Afghanistan. Even though he is out of the Army, he is forever changed by his vehicle hitting an IED (Improvised Exploding Device.) He and his men are physically fine but live with trauma from their near death experiences. (All tied to 9-11)
So how do we overcome the fear? There are lots of therapies and practical things that contribute to our overcoming, but the key is the opposite of fear: the perfect love of God. 1 John 4:18-19 states our hope clearly. “There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love. We love because he first loved us.”
If we are fearful, we have not yet tapped into the infinite love of God for us. We may be focused in on a traumatic event or the drip, drip of every day things that do not go our way. Some are seemingly always waiting for “the other shoe to drop.” Expecting punishment multiplies our fear.
Our Creator did not make us to punish us. He made us to live in loving relationship, for eternity….beginning here and now.
For me, when I realize I am losing sight of the goodness of God in large or small areas, I think about His promises and His perfect ability to fulfill His promises.
I stop.
Take a breath.
Refocus on the perfect love of God for me. For every one of us.
I ask for forgiveness because I once again forgot.
Thank God for Jesus who already paid the punishment so I do not have to.
I breathe again, and feel my blood pressure begin to head in the direction of a healthy normal.
I thank God that His promises are true and they are for me…for every one who accepts them.
In the case of national traumas like 9/11 I ask God to deal justly, and pray for God to reveal His perfect love to all those who wish to continue the terror.
I pray a blessing on them: that they would experience even more of the love of God than I have come to experience. Like the Apostle Paul, who before coming to faith persecuted the Church, I pray for them to become radical lovers of Jesus.
We do not have to stay captive to our fears! By connecting with the perfect love of God that casts out fear we can allow His promises of love, provision and protection to become our foundation.
What are you afraid of? Can you think of a promise from the word of God that shows God’s loving perspective on that fear?
Let me know if you need help. I may not have an answer off the top of my head, but I know my way around a concordance=}
