This week’s Peace Moment is by Glenn Johnson.
PEACE MOMENT
Love Casts Out All Fear
A few years ago, I was in Istanbul while traveling on business. It was a dangerous time. A month earlier a bomb killed some German tourists in a popular tourist spot. Out hotel had extensive security. Metal posts that raised and lowered to prevent unwanted vehicles, metal detectors at the entrance, 24-hour armed security guards and electronic surveillance. Rather than going out, we stayed in the hotel to eat dinner. The waitress brought a nice basket of breads before our meal arrived. Suddenly my air passage was blocked. I could not speak and I could barely breath, making only a loud wheezing sound. A colleague did the Heimlich, the waitress brought water and the crisis was averted, but for a moment, I felt as if I could have died. That was a moment of true fear.
It is easy to be overwhelmed by fear and anxiety. Even when we pray we can become distracted from our centering in God by focusing entirely on our self and our fears. As Henri Nouwen pointed out, it is too easy to allow fear to distract us with all the fears our world surrounds us with. “But we should not be afraid of our fears,” Nouwen says. “We can confront them, give words to them and lead them into the presence of him who says ‘Do not be afraid, it is I.’ Our inclination is to show our Lord only what we feel comfortable with. But the more we dare to reveal our whole trembling self to him, the more we will be able to sense that his love, which is perfect love, casts out all fears.” The first epistle of John tells us in 4:18 “There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear; for fear has to do with punishment, and who-ever fears has not reached perfection in love.”
Centering ourselves in God’s love, casts out fear. This is at the heart of the 23rd Psalm. “Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I fear no evil; for you are with me; your rod and your staff— they comfort me.” Centering ourselves in God’s love and comfort frees us from fear and opens us to the possibilities of living a rich and abundant life of love.
Let us pray.