Fear...

2Timothy 1:7 - For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline.

It's a weird time for the Buzzas right now. We're a very blessed family. We haven't been through a lot of trials and tribulations, so - as I said - this is a weird time for us.

As you know, mom is going through the final stages of her chemotherapy treatment. This would normally be enough to get anybody flustered, and - when you add the stress of her dad's health problems right now - it's understandable to feel stress.

My niece, Julia, is also having a rough go of it lately. It's believed that she's got some form of botulism. She's less than a year old, so - obviously - this is causing some concern.

CaraLee and I were up talking last night about fear and worry. It's hard seeing those you love in tough times like these.

The following observations are not meant to be an inditement on anybody's reaction to their circumstances - especially not my family's - but rather an encouragement to see fear for what it is.

Fear is a very human reaction to things out of our control. Worry, fear's closest companion, is the by-product. Both are crippling tools employed by the devil. (I know that I've lost many of you with that comment, but it's true.) There is a very spiritual element to our common fears and worries. It's pretty black and white... "God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline. " We are called to trust in God for all things. Without Him, we are left to our own, human devices which naturally fall to fear, timidity and worry.

We have even assigned some nobility to worrying for others. We call it "showing concern". I live in a hub of very thoughtful people - a group of which I can't claim membership with. Their maternal (most of them are women) instincts are nurturing and caring. I believe that this is the grayed-line that separates caregivers from worriers. I believe that it is possible to bring courage to others without being fearful. In fact, encouragers - like the group of people I just mentioned -
can't - by definition - give courage in a spirit of fear.

CaraLee made a very insightful observation last night. She said that when we give in to fear and worry, we're short-changing God. We're turning our backs on the price He's paid for us; refusing the gift He's given us. (It's a paraphrase... it was late.)

None of us Christians who deal with fear and worry think of it like that, I'm sure. But maybe we should. Luke 12:25 says, "And can any of you by worrying add a single hour to your span of life?" Worry is useless. In fact, it's worse than useless. It works against God's gift of "power, love and self-discipline."