Freeway Fear Deadly freeway shootings are almost becoming routine on Southern California freeways. Jay Leno ecently said the news had reported hat “none of them seemed to be connected. Great, that means we’ve not just got one, but a dozen or so crewballs riding around on freeways with guns.” So now we are not only frustrated with traffic, we are fearful of the driver coming up along side of us.

Fear has reached epidemic proportions in America. It is contagious; we become infected by it and pass our fears on to others. Like a disease, fear saps our energy and obs us of life’s joy.

Psychologists have established hat at birth two fears are already present: fear of loud noises and fear of falling.

While we begin our lives with only two fears, it’s not long beore we succeed in accumulating a whole score of additional fears.

We fear sicknesses, like cancer and heart disease; we fear loss of eyesight, hearing, speech and other aculties. We fear accidents, losing our jobs, losing our self-sufficiency n old age, violence, loss of possesions and terrorists.

Fear does strange things to people. Fear can keep us from riding n elevators, flying in airplanes, walking under ladders, making decisions, getting married, having children, teaching a class, meeting a stranger, even answering a phone.

Fear can shorten life, destroy relationships, create emotional problems, cause spiritual crises, in fact, make our whole life miserable.

The bottom line of many mental breakdowns, and even suicides, is fear, sometimes of the consequences of wrongful behavior.

Psychologists tell us that the two most prevalent fears are fear of failure and fear of rejection.

Fearful people are often perfectionists. Their security comes from doing things better than anyone else, disguising a deep “fear of failure.” If they can’t do it perfectly, they sometimes retreat and quit.

Withdrawal is less painful than failure. I know of one single woman who is so afraid of rejection that she will hardly even talk to a man.

We can decide to live with our fears, or we can decide to live without them. For those who want to live without fear, I suggest adopting the following principles:

Recognize that the solution to fear is faith. Jesus time and time again made it very clear that as faith increases, fear flees. Someone has said, “Fear knocked at the door of my heart, and when I sent faith to answer the door, no one was there.” Claim His promise to “never leave or forsake you.” The basic cause of fear is abandonment. Fear of abandonment is often rooted in abad gala the memories of a parent’s unpredictable behavior. Among the 366 “fear nots” in the Bible, most of the admonitions are followed by a firm assurance of the Lord’s presence.

“Fear not, for I am with you.” When we have the Lord in us, He, as perfect love, begins slowly to displace our fear. Moment by moment, he evicts the unruly tenant—fear—and occupies with His own presence.

Ask the Lord to “anoint” your imaginations. The vast amount of our fears is imaginary. Suddenly, when we least expect it, our peace of mind is invaded by frightening thoughts. Concern about people we love is played out into tragic scenes. Difficult people in our lives take leading roles as villains. Fantasies are enacted in the hidden world of our imaginations. The only way to reverse the process is to surrender our imaginations to His control.

Trust God to work things out.

Many people who were raised on the King James translation of the Bible have come to believe that, “if you love God, things will eventually work out for good.” An accurate translation of that passage is “through all things God works things together for good.” Things don’t just work out, God works things out.

Have the courage to act in the face of fear. Courage isn’t really living without fear. Courage is acting in the face of fear.

With the recent death of the Pope, we saw many documentaries on TV of his American visit. Tony Melendez was the young Mexican American youth who was born with no arms, but who played the guitar beautifully with his toes before Pope John Paul II during his American visit in 1987. I remember watching with tears running down my cheeks as he sang these words, “life passes by too quickly to allow a little problem to get you down.” A little problem like no arms didn’t keep Tony down. Why do we allow our little fears to get us down?

The solution to fear is always faith.

Resolve with me to substitute faith for fear and receive the “peace that passes all understanding.” Rev. Jon Wilson lives in Calabasas and is the Senior Pastor of Canoga Park Presbyterian Church at 22103 Vanowen in Canoga Park.

You may hear him speak on Sundays at the 9:30 a.m. worship service. You may contact him at Jonwclergy@aol.com. Call the church office for more details at (818) 883-3510.