A pastor asked her congregation one Sunday morning to read the 17th chapter of Mark in preparation for the following Sunday’s sermon. So, before giving the sermon the following Sunday, she asked how many had read Mark 17. Every hand went up. The pastor said, “Well, I have the right audience for my sermon today. It deals with liars. There is no 17th chapter in Mark’s Gospel.”
This article is not for liars, but for those experiencing fear. I think there might be a few people reading this who are fearful of something. (For me, it’s snakes!) For those of us with fears and apprehensions, the question is not, “Are you afraid?” but rather, “What are you afraid of?”
There are so many things. There is the fear of failure, of losing independence, of old age. There is the fear of the future and the unknown. There is the fear of losing home or job. There is the fear of failing health, the fear of cancer and the fear of death. There is the fear of being alone, of being unwanted or unneeded. There is also fear in the midst of an economy that just keeps on struggling.
I heard a story of two older children left alone to care for their baby five-year-old brother. During a storm the older ones got afraid and started to cry. Their baby brother said, “Stop crying. Don’t you think God knows what’s going on here?”
Imagine a little bird sitting serenely on a branch as the wind is whipping the branch all over, almost to the point of snapping. All throughout the impending storm, the bird keeps on singing, holding on to that branch, singing! Why? It has an alternative to destruction. The bird has wings! We have wings too – those wings are called hope!
Hope in the midst of struggles. No matter what they might be. Life is full of struggles and things that bring us fear. That’s life – but we have choices, don’t we. We can look at the negative; we can look at the doom and gloom and let that be our focus. Or, we can change our perspective – even in the midst of reality, in the midst of our struggles, and look to the One who has promised to be with us. The One who has plans for your good and not for your harm, to give you a future – with hope!
Let me tell you about my growing up – being raised in a preacher’s home until I was 5-years-old had its plusses and minuses. We always had a lot of fresh canned vegetables and delicious baked goods from the salt of the earth people in central Wisconsin – but there was also the occasional drama (No! not in a church!) and the reason why people brought us food was because my dad’s salary wasn’t enough to put food on the table for all of us – and pay the rest of the bills. My dad left the ministry and in the next five years went to college; got some other jobs and then my parents got a divorce. This was a tough time! We had to sell our home and move – we simply couldn’t pay the bills and make the mortgage.
With her high school education, my mom got a job – and ended up staying with it, being faithful and getting promotions – taking the bus to work in the hot summer and the freezing cold winters – retiring after 30 years! That was a happy day! She had a good retirement – because she had put in so many years and God had always provided for us as a family.
I never wanted for anything. I always had clothes, shoes, a cozy, clean home and food to eat. I didn’t know we were a poor family. I grew up thinking we were a normal middle class family. I didn’t know it wasn’t normal to have steak on the grill only once a summer – I guess that made it that much more special. We had hamburgers and tube steaks – the fancy name for hot dogs – when we grilled! And, growing up in Wisconsin, we also had freshly made bratwursts!
I grew up knowing I was to go to college – it was an expectation – and I did, and I also knew that I had to support myself. There was no other option. So, I worked, saved, got grants and scholarships and loans.
All through my growing-up years though, mom taught me by example, like giving a tithe to our church. It was the first check she’d always write when she was sitting down to pay the bills. I really believe God honored that – and somehow caused our cars to last a long time, the tires to not wear out so fast, our shoes to not wear through quickly and on and on. Call me crazy – but I believe it.
In college, I had a bumper sticker I took with me from dorm room to dorm room. I put it in front of my desk always staring at me, next to my calendar. It said this, “God has everything under control!” Those five words carried me through many struggles and trials. It became my mantra in college and in my 20s. “God has everything under control.”
Jesus says in the midst of the storms, “Fear not.” In the midst of turbulence, “Fear not.” In the midst of struggles, “Fear not!”
I can just hear Jesus saying, “Don’t be afraid …”
At the Blessing of the Animals in Balboa Park, it was such a delight to see so many people in their element with the loves of their lives! Our pets really are like family! The blessings were so meaningful – and touching. Well, you can imagine all of these beautiful creatures of all sizes – staring at each other, sizing up each other, smelling each other; and some of the dogs were afraid at times. And then to hear, in such a calm, reassuring tone, the proud owner of that dog saying, “Don’t be afraid, you’re alright.” That dog settled down and trusted those words.
Well, that is what God is saying to us in the midst of struggles; yes, even economic turbulence, “Don’t be afraid. I have everything under control. Trust me.”
My reading last week was about birds – no, it’s not for the birds, but talks about little sparrows. They’re everywhere, especially at outdoor patios and in my birdbath in my front yard. Jesus says, that not one sparrow falls to the ground without God knowing about it. That’s amazing! And what’s even more amazing is that God cares so much about you and me that God even knows the number of hairs on our head – each of us!
As I say to people who are going through a tough time, and it’s difficult for them even to receive love and care from people, I just gently say, “Feel the love.” And I say to you, “Feel God’s love, and receive the love for you – no matter the struggle you’re going through.”
Isaiah 41 says, “Fear not, for I am with you, be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my victorious right hand.”
Grab on to hope. Let that hope be your wings in the midst of your struggles.
Rev. Dan Koeshall is the Senior Pastor at The Metropolitan Community Church (The Met)
in San Diego, California, themetchurch.org
