Fear and Love

I have always been a talker, and I feel like I've learned to articulate myself and communicate my thoughts relatively well over the years. However, in light of the events in Paris, Syria, and now the U.S. in the past couple weeks, I find myself struggling to put words to my thoughts and emotions.  Some issues seem black and white.  The question of whether to respond to those in need usually is.  But there are so many layers to the discussion involving Syrian refugees that I feel it is important to acknowledge that this is NOT a cut and dry process.

I believe that the main reason that this discussion has become so difficult is because of the dichotomy of fear.  We all know that fear can be a healthy emotion sometimes.  It is fear that sets off the warning bell to keep us from being burnt by a hot surface, or electrocuting ourselves, or getting hit by a car when crossing the street.  It is fear that is leading many in our country now to say, "Keep them out.  If we can't be sure what their intentions are towards us and our innocents, we can't take that risk".

But fear can also cross a line and become the problem.  Scripture warns us against this kind of fear so many times that it is said that "Do not fear" is the most repeated command in the Bible.  Whether that is specifically true or not doesn't matter--what does matter is that God knows that we, as humans have a propensity to fear.  So, like most things that can be good, he warns us against the extreme--the point at which fear paralyzes us from the actions of love.

Love is an amazing thing.  It is one of the few things in this world that cannot be pushed into a "bad" extreme.  You can never have "too much" love.  And love does amazing things.  It gives us the power to forgive.  The second greatest commandment of the Old Testament calls us to love our neighbors.  Jesus showed us that our neighbor is more than just the person that lives next door to us (Luke 10:25-37).  Jesus also took it a step further and told us to love our enemies.

So the question remains: how do we walk the fine line of allowing fear to help protect us from danger, while at the same time loving our enemies? 

I think this is a question that we all have to answer individually for ourselves.  But as we walk through the process of answering this question, let us ask God to give us "a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control." (2 Timothy 1:7)