24 Jun You can’t miss it…

This post is really a clarification to myself of a truth that I feel the need to embrace in this season of my life. I feel this way because I know how profoundly aloof that I’m capable of being. I feel that most people could probably relate to this sentiment. If things are capable of being frigged up, then I’m capable of doing the frigging.

I feel like there’s a part of this dynamic that comes from a place of humility. Another part of it is rooted in fear. This is the part that I know to be dangerous. Fear, as my brother often says, is cheap fuel. Sure, it may get your car going. Yes, it will “work”. But, over time, it will have a cumulative degenerative effect on your internal machinery. It erodes the crucial things under the hood. When I identify fear as a primary motivating factor, I realize that there must be a better energy source out there.

This particular post is coming off of a recent conversation with someone that I care about a lot. This is a person that is acutely aware of how important it is to align their life with God’s way through decision making. This person also grew up in a religious upbringing that often attempted to leverage fear to get people to “live right”. The fear tactic is so prevalent in so many religious circles that, for most of us, the alternative is the rare exception. Fear-mongering is such a norm in faith communities that many people can’t even envision a practical alternative approach. As I had this conversation, I could tell my friend was concerned about making wise choices. I’d never advise against this sensibility. It’s just that there was also a fear that threatened to rob my friend of the freedom to enjoy life (John 10:10).

The way I’ve seen it work best is when wisdom acts as a regulator to fear, moving it to a place of healthy respect for consequences. I highly respect the consequences of falling off of a high building, so I don’t spend my time fooling around on roof tops. However, when I’m on the ground floor of the building, I don’t even consider the danger of falling off the roof. I respect this danger always, but I’m far enough away from the danger that I don’t have to worry about it.

I guess I’m writing this post as a response to the fear-based approach that so many of us genuinely committed people of faith are trying to overcome. For those of us that are practicing committing the entirety of our way to God’s way to the best of our ability, I’m writing this to invite us to relax. This word, ‘relax’, happens to be my word of the year. Like I said, I’m writing this for me first. If you know me, you know that I’m a pretty driven person. I love goals and objectives. I crave clarity because I love how it converts directly to motivation to act productively. I love to grow. I love a worthy challenge and, when I commit to one, I’ll stop at nothing to conquer it.

I genuinely like these things about myself, but I also know that they can cause me to be tense if managed improperly. If I’m not careful, my ambition will drive me to being rigid, uptight, and even legalistic. These last three attributes are the way a lot of us have experienced faith life. Oddly enough, you don’t find any of these characteristics in the true character of God. Why? Because these characteristics ultimately stem from fear… and God don’t fear nothin’.

For me, it’s the fear that comes out of the misguided belief that my success is totally up to me. It’s fear that if I can’t keep up a high level of productivity and performance, then I’ll be a casualty of mediocrity and squander all the blessings with which God has afforded me. The thing about this belief is that it is only a few degrees away from truth. That’s typically how it works. We don’t usually start off on the wrong road. We usually veer from the right road gradually, or miss an exit that alters our trajectory enough to miss our intended destination.

Is it possible for me to be responsible and relaxed? Can I maintain focus and relaxation at the same time? I believe the answer is yes. However, I don’t think it is possible to be responsible, relaxed, AND stressed all at the same time. I can’t maintain relaxation, focus, AND fearfulness. So it is fear that ruins the equation.

The biblical writer, John, gives us a better equation in 1 John 4, reminding us that love, in its perfect form, cancels out fear. He reminds us that we can have confidence because God expressed His love by saving us from ourselves and giving us the ability to live like Jesus.

As long as we are in the practice of embracing this ability, we aren’t fooling around on the roof, needing to be afraid of an impending fall. We are safely on the ground level. We respect what can happen if we were to go to the roof, but we don’t live in fear of falling because there’s no imminent danger in our position. Allowing love to cast out fear is to, as John puts it, “rely on the love God has for us”, which frees us from the fear of judgement.

In my context, the fear of judgement looks like the fear that I’ll miss my exit if I’m not always living up to an impressive standard of productivity. The love based approach focuses on the fact that God loves me so much that He’s not going to let me miss my exit. All I need to do is stay locked in with Him, His sensibilities, and His cues. It is out of this reassurance that I find the proper motivational fuel to be responsibly productive, the focus to follow him, and the freedom to relax.

There’s a part of me that says, “But what about mistakes? What happens when you don’t do everything right?” I truly believe that this is where the uniquely Christian ethic of grace comes into play. I believe grace both fuels our follow-ship of Jesus, and covers the inevitable blunders we will make in our pursuit of following.

When the fear of missing a satisfying destination kicks in, you need only to make sure you’re still tracking with God’s direction for you. Jesus says that the one that obeys him is the one that truly loves him. I have to believe that this expression of love is also part of the love that casts out fear.

So, in my final analysis on the matter, if you are making an honest effort to conform your whole way with God’s to the best of your ability, you don’t have to fear because you are entrusting your destination to God’s capable hands. You can’t miss it.