THE GIFTS OF PAIN AND FEAR

A New Day, Kiawah Island, SC

Worry, Anxiety, Courage and Hope

Pain and fear are great gifts from God that none of us want and none of us can live without.  We all go through seasons of worry and anxiety because of the nature of the broken world we live in and the function of the early development deep within our brain that alerts us to danger for survival.  When I first read about the “gift of pain” in a Philip Yancey book, I was incredulous that pain would even be considered as a gift.  But on further examination it became apparent that without the sensations of pain that are transmitted to our brains we are subject to all manner of life threatening injuries.  Sadly, the many instances that result in the loss of limbs in lepers is not the direct result of this terrible disease, but the loss of feeling on nerve endings which leprosy destroys.  This lack of pain sensations results in a person not alerted to a severe cut or infection that soon can cause the loss of a limb.

The amygdala area of our brain provides us such critical functions as automatic breathing and the “gift of fear”.  Once Again, calling the very real experience of fear a gift seems to be a big stretch!  But we’re a direct product of the DNA of our very early ancestors that were primitive survivors of all manner of threats to their lives such as volcanic eruptions and attacks from saber tooth tigers!  Today we have weapons of mass destruction, terrorism, plagues and many other new threats to our existence.  The red flag of fear results in the automatic response of fight, flight or freeze!  Even today this response can save our lives, but if the response begins to recycle in our head it can also quickly get out of control.

Adam Hamilton in his book on Unafraid offers an acronym to combat our fears:

·         Face your fears with faith.  (Scripture can be helpful)

·         Examine your assumptions in light of the facts.  (Don’t rely on a runaway imagination)

·         Attack your anxieties with action.  (Therapy can be helpful)

·         Release your cares to God.  (Turn over those things totally out of your control)

·          

The instruction “Do not be afraid” in one form or another appears over 140 times in scripture.  That teaches us that fear like pain is ageless but faith can help us find peace.  Many heroes have stated that courage isn’t the absence of fear, but rather moving through our fear in spite of it.  My physical therapist helping me recover from a total knee replacement advised me to consider pain as “weakness leaving my body”. 

One of my favorite quotes from Mary Anne Radmacher is that “Courage does not always roar.  Sometimes it is a quiet voice at the end of the day that says, ‘I will try again tomorrow.’”  Biblical scripture offers us both courage and hope and my favorite quote comes from Paul in his letter to the Philippians (4:6-7); “The Lord is near.  Don’t be anxious about anything; rather, bring up all of your requests to God in your prayers and petitions, along with giving thanks.  Then the peace of God that exceeds all understanding will keep your hearts and minds safe in Christ Jesus.”

ROLE MODELS

Watching, You Tube Screen Capture

I believe that I’m among millions of Americans who endured this painfully too long and too contentious presidential campaign of 2016 featuring the least of two evils that were ever delivered to us by both political parties. Many folks I’ve talked to had to force their fingers to activate one or the other candidates in the voting station to comply with their conscious duty to exercise their right to vote this year.

And the political debates, rallies and television ads were the most repulsive in my entire lifetime. The vetting process for any candidate and their families can only be compared to the old Salem witch hunts with the obligatory burning at the stake even before any reliable fact checking could be attempted. For those of us in a battle ground state, the penance included additional visits to all corners of the state and a barrage of television ads that were relentless.

One of the most contentious attack ads included some of Trump’s most deplorable moments and sound bites. The ad was ironically titled “Role Models” and on July 16 The New York Times covered it as the Ad of the Week stating “The Clinton campaign is continuing to focus its negative advertising efforts on provocative remarks made by Donald J. Trump, this time in a commercial that invites adults to imagine what a child might be learning from his campaign.” One of the unfortunate sound bites related that “I could stand in the middle of fifth avenue and shoot somebody and I wouldn’t lose any votes, OK” and another comment that “when Mexico sends its people, they’re bringing in drugs, they’re bringing in crime, etc.”

Watching that ad multiple times only lessened my opinion of both candidates—one for saying these things in public and the other for spending millions of dollars to repeatedly air them. After watching this ad multiple times, I began to wonder what effect it frankly had on children, not adults, that couldn’t miss seeing it. And today after I had just entered the elementary school where I volunteer I sadly found out. As I stood there making casual conversation over a snack, one little boy matter-of-factly looked up wide-eyed and said “Trump is going to be president. He kills people.” This prompted a little girl sitting next to him to look up and say “and he’s going to come get us.”

These kids’ impromptu statements caught me cold. I didn’t have an immediate response other than “No that’s not going to happen.” My heart sank for these innocents that had been exposed to bad behavior unbecoming of children their age by both presidential candidates. Clinton ended the commercial of crass Trump comments by stating that “our children and grandchildren will look back on this time at…the principles we will live by and we need to make sure they will be proud of us.” I won’t be proud to discuss this election with my grandchildren.

The timing of Christmas season couldn't be more relevant this year. Embedded in the final stanza are much needed words as we experience the carol of God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen; "And with true love and brotherhood, each other now embrace; this holy tide of Christmas, all other doth deface." It’s comforting to know that God is still in overall control and things of this world such as politics are a distant second place.

FEAR NOT!

Scared to Death, Internet Domain

As we near the time of All Saints Day or Halloween, Chapman University has released a survey of America’s top fears for 2015. Their study included areas of crime, personal anxieties, daily life and natural disasters. The top fear reported was a fear of corruption of government officials. About 25% of folks fear robots in our society. Interestingly, more people fear reptiles (33%) and public speaking (28%) than dying (22%).

When it comes to Halloween, close to 10% of people fear the supernatural such as ghosts and zombies, while a surprising 7% have a deep fear of clowns! The theme of All Hallows Eve revolves around using humor and ridicule to confront the power of death. And the contemporary objective of All Hallows Eve is to scare the wits out of somebody by dressing up in scary costumes, telling ghost stories, watching horror movies and visiting haunted houses!

I’ve read that the most frequent phrase in the Bible is “fear not”. Every time mere mortals were confronted by supernatural beings such as angels, it apparently and literally put the fear of God in them! But that supernatural being quickly brought comfort and peace to those who had the great privilege of receiving their message. In medieval times, witches were believed to accompany malignant souls seeking vengeance on their enemies until All Saints Day. They had one last chance on All Hallows Eve before moving on to the next world. So people would don masks and costumes to disguise themselves in fear of being confronted.

So this Halloween, beware of a supernatural robot wearing a clown outfit with a python wrapped around his neck knocking at your door and proclaiming, “Fear Not, I’m from the government and I’m here to help you prepare and deliver a speech to the United Nations on World Peace.” That should scare the daylights out of you!

CALMING THE STORM

Eastern Sunset, Chicago, IL
Storm Cloud, Chicago, IL
Light Show, Chicago, IL

I’ve observed that life in the Carolinas doesn’t normally involve the excitable anticipation of violent storms like those I’ve experienced in the Midwest. The more prevalent ice storms that wreak havoc on trees and electrical lines cause a lot of damage and inconvenience, but they arrive as a slow layering of light frozen rain. Watching an approaching bank of storm clouds over Lake Michigan near Chicago rekindled my memories of those nights of imminent danger, as threatening bands of thunderstorms spawning destructive tornados moved through my homeland in Kansas. It was always an adventure to count the seconds between a jagged lightning strike and the deep rolling thunder that followed to count the dwindling number of miles that separated us from the approaching menace of nature’s wrath.

The storm moving over Lake Michigan reminded me of the 1975 wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald on Lake Superior, or as the native Chippewa called it, Gitche Gumee. Strong winds and waves were said to have capsized the ship as all twenty nine hands on board perished that fateful night. The disaster inspired Gordon Lightfoot to write one of the most famous story songs ever recorded. And the echoes of those lyrics reminded me of the Gospel story of Jesus calming the storm on the Sea of Galilee or Lake Gennesaret.

James Martin, a Franciscan priest, spent the majority of his life as a spiritual director. As he stands on the shores of the Sea of Galilee, he recalls that “this story of the stilling of the storm is by far the most helpful for people going through difficult times”. Jesus had been preaching all day from a fishing boat to better reach the crowds on the shoreline. He was exhausted and asks his disciples to sail the boat to ‘the other side’. Evening was approaching on the lake when the conditions were ripe for storms. Martin mentions that the dramatic difference in temperatures between the shoreline at 680 feet below sea level and the surrounding hills which can reach 2,000 feet generate strong winds funneling through the hills, whipping up high waves in the relatively shallow waters of only 200 feet.

The disciples find they are caught in the middle of a dark storm at sea and are understandably afraid, while Jesus lies on a cushion in the stern of the boat engaged in untroubled sleep. They wake him up and ask “do you not care that we are perishing”? Jesus rises, rebukes the wind and says to the sea, “Peace! Be still!” A great calm instantly falls over the lake, as even the wind and the sea obeyed him. Martin concludes that “everyone faces stormy times, when God’s presence is hard to perceive. One of the most common struggles in the spiritual life is a feeling of God’s absence in painful times…Perhaps because when we are struggling, we tend to focus on the area of pain”.

When the lightning flashes, the thunder rolls across the land, the winds howl through the bending trees and the waves break over the ship’s bow, we can still be assured of calm seas as we seek the safety of the other side. Because all we ever need to focus on is His ultimate authority over all creation and His promise to be with us always.