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 No Fear
by Teresa Bell Kindred
Last weekend, I took my twin sons and two of their cousins to an aquatic center. There were three pools — one right next to the other. The pool where we spent the most time was the one that had four diving boards of varying heights. For three and a half hours, I watched as the four boys did flips and dives into the pool. My boys are eleven and their cousins are about the same age. If I could harness their energy I would have enough power to light up the entire city of New York. As I watched the boys jump fearlessly off the diving board, I remembered my own experience with the high dive when I was about their age. My mother was terrified of the water and she passed those fears on to me. One reason she was so afraid of the water was because she couldn’t swim. She was determined that my brother and I would learn! Back then, there were no man made swimming pools in our small community, so Mama drove us to a nearby town for lessons. My teacher’s name was Miss Salisbury. I can still see her blue eyes and sun-freckled face beneath a white swim cap just as clearly as if it were yesterday. One day, Miss Salisbury announced that today we would go off the high dive. I looked at her like she had just announced we would all eat a pound of prunes. No way was I going off that diving board — not in a million years. Miss Salisbury just smiled when I refused, and then convinced me to at least go up there and look around. She went with me. When I reached the end of the board, I informed her that I hadn’t changed my mind. It was too scary and I had no intentions of jumping. “You’ll be fine,” she said, and then she pushed me. That push had the exact opposite result that my mother and Miss Salisbury were hoping for. It didn’t lessen my fears; it made them worse. To this day, I have a fear of heights. I never drive over a bridge, or look out a window in a tall building that my palms don’t sweat and I get an uneasy feeling in the pit of my stomach. And airplanes ... forget it!
A few days ago I was driving down the road and a squirrel ran out in front of my car. I was far enough from him that I started braking, trying to miss him. He went one way, then he turned and ran back, then he turned and went back the other way again. I managed to miss him, but he was the most indecisive squirrel I’ve ever seen. His indecision almost killed him. Indecision is a very dangerous thing. Let’s help our children learn to live their Christian lives with confidence, because they have seen us living the way of God decisively, with no fear. As Christians, if we don’t know what we believe and why we believe it, our children will see through us. If we say we are Christians, but don’t act like one at home, they won’t respect us. And if we want our children to grow spiritually, we can’t be like the squirrel in the middle of the road. We have to make a decision about which way we are going and then stick to it so they can see and follow rather than being pushed into something they aren’t ready to do!
Title: "No Fear" Author: Teresa Bell Kindred Publication Date: August 14, 2003 |
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