{"id":15236,"date":"2020-04-01T01:25:21","date_gmt":"2020-04-01T01:25:21","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/iamsignificant.ca\/andre\/?p=15236"},"modified":"2020-08-18T17:51:02","modified_gmt":"2020-08-18T17:51:02","slug":"the-both-and-approach-to-fear","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/iamsignificant.ca\/andre\/featured\/the-both-and-approach-to-fear\/","title":{"rendered":"The Both-And approach to Fear"},"content":{"rendered":"

It was a simple statement on my feed this morning. \u00a0They stated, \u201cFaith and worry cannot co-exist.\u201d<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

With a sigh, I asked, \u201cSo then why is it that fear and faith co-exist all the time?\"<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

We have to do better than mere platitudes. <\/span><\/p>\n

Surely Christian spirituality is more robust in the crucible of real life.<\/span><\/p>\n

When we are in the shadow of significant challenges and suffering it\u2019s natural for us to worry - or can we say, to be afraid. \u00a0This is how humans are wired for survival. \u00a0Healthy fear and worry can motivate us to take action to deal with a threat. \u00a0Faith isn't opposed to prudent action<\/strong> like keeping your child from a busy street. Faith isn\u2019t a substitute for working to make your mortgage payment. \u00a0Faith is not a substitute for getting good medical care when you are ill.<\/span><\/p>\n

The opposite of faith is certainty, but certainty is how faith is peddled in many western church contexts.<\/strong> \u00a0 For many, faith is the currency we exchange for the goodies of God, or magic to keep bad things from happening. \u00a0The spiritual commodity of \u2018works\u2019 we have to possess to get God to do what we want.<\/span><\/p>\n

Imagine the extra anxiety that amid worry to have shame piled on you because you\u2019re worried that you don\u2019t have faith?! \u00a0If faith works this way, one can feel totally screwed - caught between a rock and a hard place<\/strong>. \u00a0You are worried so it\u2019s implied you don\u2019t have faith but you need to have faith to not be scared. \u00a0How cruel!<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Faith doesn\u2019t promise that struggle and suffering won\u2019t come, however, it does promise that when it does we are not alone.\u00a0<\/strong><\/span>God is with us through our night times of fear, and no matter the outcome, \u00a0the faithful God who loves never leaves us. \u00a0That when we have done all that we can do, <\/span>we can stand firm in the presence of the Abba of Jesus.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Speaking of which, I\u2019m thinking about Jesus in the Garden.<\/span><\/p>\n

Luke 22: 37 He took Peter and the two sons of Zebedee along with him, and he began to be sorrowful and troubled<\/strong>. 38 Then he said to them, \u201cMy soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death<\/strong>. Stay here and keep watch with me.\u201d 39 Going a little farther, he fell with his face to the ground and prayed, \u201cMy Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

____________________<\/p>\n

We come from an ancient tradition of people who Lament and \u00a0yet people of the Presence.
\n____________________
\n<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Jesus seems to be experiencing worry and fear with what is about to happen. \u00a0Can we say that Jesus lacked faith because he was worried? \u00a0Of course not, <\/strong>so why in God\u2019s name would we hang such religious nonsense on ourselves and other people?<\/span><\/p>\n

Jesus\u2019 passion was no cliche\u2019<\/strong>. \u00a0His cross wasn\u2019t a shiny gold cross in a sterile cathedral. \u00a0The passion was ugly. \u00a0Every last bit of it. \u00a0Jesus being fully human would have agonized physically and emotionally with each step - each step full of anxiety and also full of faith<\/strong>. \u00a0The character of his Father - His faithful abiding presence - was in each step of Jesus\u2019 march of misery towards crucifixion. And because of Jesus, God is with us too.<\/span><\/p>\n

Brene Brown has lots to say about courage. \u00a0I have heard her say that courage is not the absence of fear, rather doing what you need to do even when you are afraid<\/strong>. \u00a0It is the conviction of faith and the ever-present presence of the God who loves that walks with us through the night-time of our fear. \u00a0 This is walking in faith.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Presence is the promise<\/strong>. \u00a0It meets us in the scary times, the times of suffering, with love, a tenacious hope central to His compassionate presence, and with this assurance, we walk headlong into our deepest fears and suffering .... and out the other side. \u00a0Sometimes with a limp and sometimes \u2018On the third day\u2019<\/strong>.<\/span><\/p>\n

Nevertheless, never alone<\/strong>.<\/span><\/p>\n

_________________________<\/strong><\/p>\n

Many spiritual practices can help us affix our gaze, attune our ear so that we can sense\/intuit God in the darkness of the night-time of our fears. \u00a0I continue to be an advocate for contemplative forms of prayer<\/strong> that can be practiced in a variety of ways and settings.<\/span><\/p>\n

The word practice in the term \u2018spiritual practice\u2019 shouldn\u2019t be overlooked. \u00a0It is helpful to practice our preferred spiritual practice on a regular (at least daily) basis<\/strong>. \u00a0I have a daily practice of contemplative prayer and the Examen. I cannot overstate the benefits of my practice in my life.<\/span><\/p>\n

But I also understand that when our minds are going a million miles an hour in forty-five different directions that sometimes the more contemplative practices can be a challenge. \u00a0To this end, I often recommend a few whole body practices<\/strong> like prayer walks, walking a labyrinth, or forest bathing. \u00a0I enjoy singing, being creative or a Qi Gong exercise called Open the Heart. \u00a0 These practices can help us be more present to the moment in our bodies. \u00a0It can be an effective way\u00a0to soothe our amygdala and help create an inner refuge from the storms so we can see, hear, intuit a little better.<\/span><\/p>\n

Still finding this difficult?<\/strong> \u00a0Try a simple practice to cultivate gratitude. \u00a0Ask for the grace to reflect on your life (your day) with the Holy Spirit, and make a physical list of all the things you are grateful for - big or small. Read your list a couple of times during the day. \u00a0And repeat the exercise the next day - fresh mercies each morning!<\/span><\/p>\n

These practices are not a means to obligate God to do something for you. \u00a0We don\u2019t use them as incantations to keep evil from befalling our homes - rather they serve to deepen our relationship and attune us to the reality that God is with us - no matter what. \u00a0These practices can help us wake up to what has been true all along.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

I find myself sitting with and encouraging others with Romans 8:38. \u00a0I like the way The Message says it:<\/span><\/p>\n

I\u2019m absolutely convinced that nothing\u2014nothing living or dead, angelic or demonic, today or tomorrow, high or low, thinkable or unthinkable\u2014absolutely nothing<\/i> can get between us and God\u2019s love because of the way that Jesus our Master has embraced us. <\/strong>(emphasis mine)<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

-- Peace to you \u00a0--<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"It was a simple statement on my feed this morning. \u00a0They stated, \u201cFaith and worry cannot co-exist.\u201d With a sigh, I asked, \u201cSo then why is it that fear and faith co-exist all the time?\" We have to do better than mere platitudes. Surely Christian spirituality is more robust in the crucible of real life. When we are in the Continue Reading<\/a>","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":15255,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[33,8],"tags":[58,129,167,172,175,179,187,392],"yoast_head":"\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\t\n\t\n\n\n\n\n\t\n\t\n\t\n