We have been labeled a nation in fear. It seems that we fear not only the potentially disastrous real life situations such as a terrorist attack, a home invasion, or murder, but we also are permeated with mundane fears. And they are destroying the quality of our lives…
We fear speaking in public, new situations, new relationships, new demands and expectations, new arrangements, and meeting new people.
We fear opening the front door, attending a new group for the first time, asking directions of strangers, and what others think of us.
We fear people who are not like us, may not think like us, may hold different views, have a different nationality or race, use a different language or way of speaking.
We fear those who see God differently, eat differently, dress differently, and speak differently, etc.
And we even seem to fear seeking understanding that might eliminate
the ignorance that leads to our fears.
FDR said that all we have to fear is fear itself, and yet we have become a nation of fearful and intolerant people who basically fear change in a world of constant change. Although we continually attempt to communicate with each other through the fastest and most convenient technology available, our communication seems to be nothing but prattle...a way of talking at each other that is superficial at best.
In a world of relentless change and multitasking, we have lost that sense of inner peace that gives us an anchor against over stimulation and chaos. We have lost the trust and especially the love that is the opposite of fear. But then, maybe we have never really found love in the true sense of the word.
Love, and its counterpart, intimacy, go far beyond the average person’s view of the words. Genuine love includes things like compassion, kindness, awareness of others needs, gentleness, forgiveness, tolerance, gratefulness, taking action for the good of yourself and others, etc. Intimacy is really a sense of trust, faith, openness, and honesty that leads to closeness with another. Together they can bring hope and personal peace.
So, why haven’t we been able to get these two into perspective? The bottom line is that there are two basic ways of living life: out of fear or out of love. And the resulting effects of your choice can be dramatic.
What if we could eliminate the tremendous fear coming from the complications of daily life? What if we could do this by simply making better choices in our daily lives?
What would happen if, on a moment-to-moment basis, we would actually choose love over fear?
We fear speaking in public, new situations, new relationships, new demands and expectations, new arrangements, and meeting new people.
We fear opening the front door, attending a new group for the first time, asking directions of strangers, and what others think of us.
We fear people who are not like us, may not think like us, may hold different views, have a different nationality or race, use a different language or way of speaking.
We fear those who see God differently, eat differently, dress differently, and speak differently, etc.
And we even seem to fear seeking understanding that might eliminate
the ignorance that leads to our fears.
FDR said that all we have to fear is fear itself, and yet we have become a nation of fearful and intolerant people who basically fear change in a world of constant change. Although we continually attempt to communicate with each other through the fastest and most convenient technology available, our communication seems to be nothing but prattle...a way of talking at each other that is superficial at best.
In a world of relentless change and multitasking, we have lost that sense of inner peace that gives us an anchor against over stimulation and chaos. We have lost the trust and especially the love that is the opposite of fear. But then, maybe we have never really found love in the true sense of the word.
Love, and its counterpart, intimacy, go far beyond the average person’s view of the words. Genuine love includes things like compassion, kindness, awareness of others needs, gentleness, forgiveness, tolerance, gratefulness, taking action for the good of yourself and others, etc. Intimacy is really a sense of trust, faith, openness, and honesty that leads to closeness with another. Together they can bring hope and personal peace.
So, why haven’t we been able to get these two into perspective? The bottom line is that there are two basic ways of living life: out of fear or out of love. And the resulting effects of your choice can be dramatic.
What if we could eliminate the tremendous fear coming from the complications of daily life? What if we could do this by simply making better choices in our daily lives?
What would happen if, on a moment-to-moment basis, we would actually choose love over fear?
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