Why Are You Afraid?

Descending through a thunderstorm into Miami on a short flight from Orlando, our plane suddenly dropped several hundred feet.  About 5 or 6 rows in front of me, a young man flew out of his seat, smashing his head into the overhead compartment.  Maybe he was "stunned" or just slow to react, but he didn't immediately fasten his seatbelt and when the plane dropped another several hundred feet, he again smashed into the overhead compartment!  It would have been funny, had I not been white-knuckle gripping my seat's armrests.  I was terrified.  I don't like the feeling of free-falling, even on amusement park rides. So, to unexpectedly drop twice in a matter of seconds on this flight was disconcerting to say the least.  My prayer at that moment was short, simple, and on repeat: "Lord, please help us land safely and quickly, but not too quickly!  God, just get this plane on the ground!  But again, not immediately!"

Jesus' disciples must have felt similar emotions as they traversed the chaotic Sea of Galilee in the middle of a terrifying storm.  "On that day, when evening had come, he said to them, 'Let us go across to the other side.'  And leaving the crowd behind, they took him with them in the boat, just as he was.  Other boats were with him.  A great windstorm arose, and the waves beat into the boat, so that the boat was already being swamped.  But he was in the stern, asleep on the cushion; and they woke him up and said to him, 'Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?'  He woke up and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, 'Peace!  Be still!'  Then the wind ceased, and there was a dead calm.  He said to them, 'Why are you afraid?  Have you still no faith?'  And they were filled with great awe and said to one another, 'Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?'' (Mark 4:35-41, NRSV).

Have you ever been there - in the middle of a sheer moment of terror?  Fear is one of the most visceral emotions we feel.  Our heartrate explodes, our palms sweat profusely, our thinking rapidly speeds up, while time seems to slow down.  Every resource our body can muster is devoted to this one moment, this one issue, this one crisis.  It's no wonder that we feel "spent" when the moment passes.

But sometimes fear doesn't come and go in quite such a rush.  There are moments in our lives when instead of being unexpectantly tossed into terror, we are forced to labor through a long, slow sense of dread.  But this feeling is just as real as the more visceral feelings of fear, and quite possibly, more damaging.  Persistent anxiety can be even more toxic as the most frightening of scares. 

But maybe the worst kind of fear is the kind of fear that develops out of perfectionism and the desire to be a "control freak".  When we are afraid to fail, and so fail to try, we have allowed fear to win.  When we are unwilling to relinquish control, we again have handed fear a victory.

According to the gospel of Mark, fear, not doubt is the enemy of faith.  Any of us who trust in God have at times doubted.  In fact, if we've never experienced a doubt, I doubt our faith is mature and tested.  Doubting is normal.  When doubts arise, I can still act in faith.  I can hold my faith and my doubts in tension.  In fact, faith isn't the absence of doubt, but the capacity to trust and to act despite our doubts.  But fear on the other hand, can be crippling.  Fear has the power to leave us in a perpetual state of floundering.

When Jesus called his disciples, he invited them to join him on the adventure of a lifetime.  It was an adventure that would take them, at least temporarily, away from their friends and family.  It was a calling that would force them to reevaluate all they previously held dear.  It was a journey that would place them in challenging circumstances, physically, mentally, relationally, and spiritually.  Essentially, Jesus was calling them to take a leap of faith, to put their trust in him, and to be willing go "all in" for his kingdom movement.  The majority of their kinsmen would think they were nuts, but if Jesus was right and God's kingdom really was coming through this ministry, then their role in this mission had the power to not only change their own lives, but the world!  Would this require faith?  Absolutely!  Would this inevitably be accompanied by doubt?  Surely.  Was this a scary proposition?  Totally.  But, if through faith, they could manage their doubt, while overcoming their fear, they would be a part of the greatest revolution in human history.  One that still resonates in our world today!

The fear the disciples faced on that boat that stormy evening so long ago wasn't the biggest test their faith they would face.  That would come later.  But it was a great opportunity for Jesus to plant tiny seeds of faith in their hearts.  Jesus knew that those tiny seeds had the power to grow into massive plants of faith in the future (Mark 4:30-32).  He knew that faith isn't the absence of fear, it's the ability to overcome that fear.  And slowly, but surely the disciples would begin to take those faithful steps that evening on the Sea of Galilee.  

What about us?  What are we afraid of?  Is there some gnawing fear that's holding us back?  Is God calling us to take a step of faith - maybe even a leap of faith into the unknown?  If so, Jesus asks us this question: "Why are you afraid?  Have you still no faith?" - Shay