Love Casts Out Fear

I will never forget my first panic attack. I was a freshman in college when my heart started racing, the crowded room felt like it was shrinking, and my breath came in short gasps. I didn't know what was happening, but I had never experienced such overwhelming fear. I quickly decided that fear was something I wanted to avoid at all costs.

You may never have had a panic attack, but I'm sure you are familiar with the stress of anxiety. Fear can control our lives, even when we're not conscious of it.

Many people organize their entire lives around maintaining enough control so they don't feel afraid. We are taught from childhood that with hard work and careful planning, it's possible to determine our own destinies. With the right education, the right job, the right partner, the right portfolio, and the right insurance policies, we can achieve peace of mind.

But it turns out that freedom from fear is an elusive pursuit. Nagging questions keep surfacing. What if we've missed something? And what happens if things don't work out the way we've planned? Despite our best efforts, it seems that we are always one unexpected turn of events away from disaster.

Jesus gives us a different formula for freedom from fear. He introduces us to a loving, giving, all-powerful Father: "Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom" (Luke 12:32 NIV).

Coming to believe the outrageous generosity of God in Jesus Christ through the gospel is the antidote to fear. I have been reconciled to my Creator; and since He is in control, I don't have to be. What a revolutionary discovery! I can face an unknown future because I know the God of the future.

Trusting the loving intentions of my heavenly Father has at least two radical implications for me.* First, it changes the way I think about neediness. I am naturally compulsive about avoiding needs. Needs make me feel weak and vulnerable. But needs actually make me a candidate for God's gifts. The desire to live without needs is really a desire to live without God.

Second, it prepares me for a life of receptivity. Control is my attempt to squeeze everything I can get out of life in order to protect my well-being. But I can't possibly eke out enough to meet the real needs of my heart. And that's where grace comes in. God gives what I can't earn. The best things in life come to me as gifts. Needs are really God's invitation to live in His grace-filled world.

Knowing what He knew about His Father, it's little wonder that Jesus turned the value system of the dog-eat-dog "real world" on its head with some of the most beautiful words in the Bible: "So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well" (Matt. 6:31-33).

* Insights from Tell It Slant by Eugene Peterson.