Fear takes a foothold
When it makes us feel helpless
When it takes our world
And makes it into something we don’t understand
When a forest walk becomes a forest fire
And a locale of tranquillity and peace
Becomes an environment fixated on making us
Toasted and crispy
Or in a certain shark movie’s famous opening scene
When a romantic ocean swim
So calm and serene
Creates an unimagined awareness
Of creatures circling in the deep
Or when a routine visit to the GP
Becomes the potential horror of that disease
Beginning with C
A certain semblance of predictability
Is what a lot of people need
And the disciples wouldn’t have gotten that
From the Sea of Galilee
It was prone to sudden storms
That could seemingly spring out of nowhere
And isn’t that so much like life?
For as long as we live life
There are a lot of things we can’t foresee
And we’ll always be let down
If predictable circumstances are what we need
But faith deals in what is seen
And what is unseen
Faith places God’s authority
Above life’s unpredictability
For in God’s world
There are no surprises
No combination of events
That make him sit up and say
“I wasn’t expecting that!”
So if fear finds a foothold
In the unexpected
And unknown
We can expect
And know
That God knows what we face
And knows
Exactly what to do
Whether it’s rebuking the storm
Or taking our hand
And leading us through