Trust

Leslie Weatherhead tells a parable of a little boy who ran from a witch who had turned herself into a cat.  As the boy ran, he kept looking back fearfully over his shoulder. The first time the boy looked back, the cat was the size of a calf. The next time he looked, it had grown to the dimensions of an elephant. Then the boy fell, and was unable to go farther. At that point, he got up, turned and faced the witch. It stopped. So he took a step toward it, and it backed away. As he continued to move toward it, it began to shrink in size and began to retreat. Finally, it changed into a mouse and ran under the door of the cottage, never to be seen again.

The point of the story is clear: it pays to face up to your fears. When not confronted, they have a way of growing exponentially.

Do you know what the most frequent command in the Bible is? You might think that it is “Love God,” or “Love your neighbor,” According to Jesus, those are the greatest commandments, but, they are not the most frequent. Actually, the most frequent command in the Bible is: “Fear not!” Far more than any other command, over and over we read the words, “Fear not.”   Fear not.

As Jesus put it so beautifully in Luke 12:6, “Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? Yet not one of them is forgotten by God. Indeed, the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.”

Let us pray: Loving God, we admit that when we face difficult, confusing, scary circumstances in life, it is often hard to trust you. Fear rises up in us, and our minds are drawn to the worst possible outcome. Reassure us this day with your presence. Help us to trust that in life and in death, we belong to you, through Jesus Christ. Amen.