Paralyzed by fear

Have you ever been so fearful of something that the mere thought of it took your breath away? A wave of anxiety would consume you as you pondered its terror? 

When I was young, I was absolutely convinced that childbirth had to be the most wretched pain ever. I resolved I would simply remain without children. I was, well...wrong.

One of my children has a pathological fear of violent death. Think terrorists barging into our home to wake us from our sleep and torture us before shooting us all one by one. This has been ongoing since first grade, when history somehow demanded that the events of 9/11 be unraveled in an elementary classroom. 

No scripture or prayer has been able to fully undo the fear in my child. Though I hope in time, it will fade away. 

Maybe you fear death, or public speaking, or pain, or public humiliation, or something else entirely. 

Did you know God really and truly wants to take away your fear? His word says “There is no fear in love. Perfect love casts out fear.” (1 John 4:18) 

That doesn’t mean if you’re a believer the fear simply goes away. Because the devil is the one who holds the power of death, the battle is with him. For some, it is a constant battle because naturally as you draw nearer to God, the enemy is closer still, breathing down your neck. 

But there's a truth you can and should hang onto. The reality is one act of love canceled out this power. Perfect love. No other kind would do.

Hebrews 2:14b-15 says “by (Jesus’) death he might break the power of him who holds the power of death — that is, the devil — and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death.” 

My grandpa died about 10 years ago. It was a beautiful thing, which sounds strange, but bear with me to understand why his death was truly like a fairy tale.  

He was terrified of dying, but only recently. I had visited him not long before in his new home — an apartment in an assisted living facility. He moved there because he had fallen in his new house. 

As I visited, he relayed the story to me. He was trapped on top of his own arm. Seconds turned into minutes turned into hours. He was not only physically stuck, his mind and emotions were trapped on a single thought planted there by the enemy: You will die as you suffer in pain on top of your own arm unable to move. Your death will be slow and agonizing, as you starve unnoticed and unknown in this world. Satan is so convincing!

But God is more powerful still! A prayer saved his life then. He prayed that God would give him supernatural strength to rise up and call 911, and God answered that prayer. But my grandpa, with tears in his eyes, told me he was now scared of death because of the pain he experienced. I hugged him and comforted him as best I could, mind you this was all before I was born again in Christ. 

Not long after that, we went to Branson for a family reunion. Grandpa grew up nearby — one of 11 children — living in the hills of Missouri with no electricity or indoor plumbing. He was reunited for a week with all of his living siblings, and spent time with most of his children and grandchildren and even some great-grandchildren. Then we all kissed him good-bye, and just down the road he had a heart attack at the gas station five minutes after I kissed him  in the back seat of my cousin’s car. 

He was surrounded by love in his last moments, and his death was very fast and pain-free.

I believe he is in heaven now, celebrating yet another answered prayer. 

You see, perfect love experiences the fear on our behalf. Christ suffered in death so that you don’t have to. To make atonement for our sins, He suffered as a man of flesh and blood to “taste death for everyone.” Hebrews 2:9

So next time you find yourself overcome by a wave of terror or anxiety, instead of letting it knock you to the ground, say a prayer and ask God to help you remain steadfast. Open Hebrews 2 and be encouraged by these words. “Because he himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted,” from verse 18.