“The oldest and strongest emotion of mankind is fear,” as H.P. Lovecraft points out.
We all encounter fear from time to time. It is a good thing when it alerts us to jump away from an oncoming car coming or when it motivates us to go to the doctor for a persistent pain.
But chronic fear, a prolonged, persistent state of apprehension or anxiety, can be dangerous. In chronic fear we tend to make poor decisions. The website for Northwestern Medicine explains, “When the amygdala senses fear, the cerebral cortex (area of the brain that harnesses reasoning and judgment) becomes impaired. This makes it difficult to make good decisions or think clearly.”
And chronic fear can sabotage our health. The Mental Health Foundation of the United Kingdom stresses, “Fear is also strongly linked to poor physical health. People with generalized anxiety disorder have been found to be at higher risk of coronary heart disease, while anxiety has been linked to increased incidence of gastrointestinal problems, arthritis, migraine, allergies, thyroid disease and chronic respiratory disorders such as asthma.”
Out of concern for any who struggle with chronic fear, God says to us in Isaiah 41:10, “Do not be afraid, for I am with you. Do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”
The leading promise in this verse is God’s promise to be with us in all things—no matter what we face.
When I quoted H.P. Lovecraft earlier, I omitted his second assertion. The full sentence reads, “The oldest and strongest emotion of mankind is fear, and the oldest and strongest kind of fear is fear of the unknown.”
We face many “unknowns” in our lives. We face uncertainties about our physical health, our finances, our work, and our relationships. But amidst all of these uncertainties, we know this: God has promised to be with us in all things. And as long as we know God’s presence with us, we can face the uncertainties of our lives with courage and hope, for God will never leave us to face anything alone.
The great challenge of life is to train ourselves to discern God’s nearness to us.
C.S. Lewis remarks, “We can ignore, but we can nowhere evade, the presence of God. The world is crowded with Him. He walks everywhere incognito. And the incognito is not always hard to penetrate. The real labor is to attend. In fact, to come awake. Still more, to remain awake.”
In the coming week, I invite you to conclude each day asking yourself this question: “Where did I see evidence of God’s presence this day?”
As you practice answering that question, you will grow in your capacity to notice God’s nearness to you—even in the tough times.