"There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love." (1 John 4:18 NIV)
It’s embarrassing, but I felt fear yesterday. I arrived at the dentist’s office fairly calm, convinced of my stress fracture and determined to face the cure. I settled into the chair and the first two shots were far more painful than I had expected! Back teeth mean big nerves and I suddenly I was concerned they wouldn’t fully fall asleep. When they left the room to let the sedative set in, I became a live wire; far too shaky to work on. My thinking was in a nosedive with my feelings. I knew we needed to proceed but I wanted to flee as far from that office as I could. If I did, I’d still have a broken tooth and a limited bite.
Instead, I elected to invite the Spirit of God into my frame. I closed my eyes and focused my soul on my Maker. I pictured the cloud of presence creeping up the stairs into my heart. Perfect love slowly pushed fear out of my house: not quite entirely, but enough to make it through the procedure.
Today’s devotions brought it home: perfect love drives out fear. Sometimes I get discouraged because even after 38 years as a believer, I still experience fear from time to time. But looking back, it’s far less than I began with. (High school Anna had to take a sedative before her dental visits because she was too high-strung to open her mouth!)
If “the one who fears is not made perfect in love” yet, we can be encouraged. Perfecting is a process. As long as we are breathing, we are making our way through this wilderness. Sanctification is a slow chipping away of our rough edges, a thorough rearrangement of our values and the painstaking reformation of our thinking. When we feel fear, we needn’t add shame to the equation. Instead, we find courage when we can admit our lack. When we can admit our deficit to our loving Father, He fills in the gaps.
“The call of discipleship includes experiencing our feelings, reflecting on our feelings and then thoughtfully responding to our feelings under the lordship of Jesus.”
(Emotionally Healthy Spirituality)
We can try to pretend we are fine, but our body will bear witness to our feelings, even if we’ve stuff them down deep. It is far better to feel, to acknowledge the fear and to invite God into our pain point. This is one of the ways we grow up in Him.
Friend, it is going to take practice and likely the whole of our lives to learn to let love drive out fear. How kind of God to give us so many tutorials! Review sessions are gifts that good teachers give to prepare their students to pass the next test.
"When I am afraid, I put my trust in You." (Psalm 56:3 NIV)
Lord, forgive us for turning to fear so readily. Our human frames are frail and we are easily intimidated. Please teach us to turn to You when fear floods in. Let Your love dwelling in our frames be more persuasive than the anxiety that seeks to paralyze us. Sanctify us as we make our way across the wilderness. Consume us with Your presence as we keep throwing open the doors and cupboards and corners of our lives. Amen.