Mark 5:35-36
While he was still speaking, there came from the ruler's house some who said, “Your daughter is dead. Why trouble the Teacher any further?” But overhearing what they said, Jesus said to the ruler of the synagogue, “Do not fear, only believe.”
Tag: Belief Conquers Fear
Fear is created when we believe something has the power to diminish, destroy or derail our safety. It can be created when an event presents a pattern that connects with previous bad circumstances where we received damage: A dog bites you in the past and now, a new dog presents a similar threat. It can also be conjured up in our imagination because we have created a narrative that is replacing an unknown we face: The doctor tells us we have lump in a breast - we begin to fear because we create a narrative in our minds of all the things that can happen to us. It can be created because of an obvious, current event that is logical in our minds: We are attacked by an intruder. Or, as the above shows, we fear when someone we love is hurting, or die, and we hare completely out of control. Whatever the cause of the fear, the above words from Jesus are the antidote: “only believe.” Jesus transcends all fear. Jesus tells us, “I got this.” That does not change the circumstances, it just allows us to “frame” the circumstances in a way that we see them through the eyes of the power of God, rather than our own helpless power. Belief in God changes the emotion of fear in that it replaces the unknown, the loss of control, and destroys all past patterns of thought with a thought that transcends anything we face. God trumps all situations. God can (and often does) does something that is incredibly awesome and rescues us from certain peril (as in the above story ... God heals the man’s daughter). Sometimes, however, God does not do something miraculous to change the situation or circumstances. Sometimes He simply changes us and gives us an incredible calmness; fills us with supernatural peace; or, replaces our fear with an incredible joy that no one can explain. How God solves the problem is not the point. The avenue God sues to solve the problem is: He wants us to believe. We are called to believe, whether we want to or not. We are called to have faith, whether we have it or or not. Belief trumps fear because God is greater than any of our circumstances or situations.
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