What's your worst fear? What is it that keeps you awake at night? There are plenty of things to choose from these days. Here in the United States, some people are panicked over the upcoming presidential elections. They just know if their candidate doesn't win, everything is going to fall apart. For many others, the horror du jour is the economy. Banks failing, stocks falling around the world, taxpayer money going to save financial institutions ... the news seems to get bleaker by the day. Many others are still picking up the pieces from recent natural disasters. We've had hurricanes, wildfires, floods, earthquakes, and hosts of other catastrophes. For a lot of people, tomorrow isn't the problem; they don't know how to get through today.
Many of us, though, have found our own personal terrors. Health issues. Death of a loved one. Relationship trouble. Addictions. Legal problems. Crises don't have to appear on the national news to have a huge impact on our lives. Some of these problems are self-inflicted; others come to us through no fault of our own.
So, what's your worst fear? What robs you of peace? What clouds your view of the horizon? Whatever it is, wouldn't it be nice to get rid of it? Maybe I can't fix all of your problems, but I can tell you how to recover your peace and maybe even get to where you can sleep at night. Here's what a man named Paul wrote many years ago: "Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus" (Philippians 4:6-7). "Sure," you say. "Easy for this guy Paul. He wasn't facing what I'm facing." While that's probably true, Paul certainly was not living the life of ease when he wrote those words. He was in chains in a Roman jail cell. He wasn't serving out a sentence; he was awaiting a probable execution.
So listen to his words. He knows how to face fear. As Paul said, God can give you a peace that goes beyond what is reasonable, that goes beyond human understanding. He can teach you to take all of those problems, bundle them up, and give them to him. We'd love to tell you more about the God that can do this. Go to our website at www.hopeforlife.org and look at videos of people who have found peace at times when others only find fear. Write to me at tim@hopeforlife.org or leave a comment on our blog and let me help you find peace that passes all understanding.
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