What are you afraid of?

We've got it going on here, whatever that means. I'll let you decide. It is Tuesday, May 6, 2014, and I'm trying to nail down the things that we are most afraid of and think about why. We've all heard the jokes about how people fear public speaking more than they fear death itself. People would actually rather die than have to stand up and speak before an audience. The chart above tells us that mosquitoes kill more people than other animals, yet, they typically are not on the list of phobias that plague us. A recent survey showed that the fear of spiders (Arachnophobia) had garnered the most votes, moving to second was social phobia – the fear of social situations. More than simple shyness, this is an extreme fear of being scrutinized by others, or humiliated by one’s own actions. This is usually where the fear of public speaking falls. Okay. Here's the big news flash. Less than 10 people die each year from a spider bite and while there may be an occasional heart attack victim from dealing with social phobia, it's not enough even to count. Those are the top two. After these two, the top ten is completed by the fear of flying; fear of an inescapable situation; fear of confined spaces; fear of heights; fear of vomit; fear of cancer; fear of thunderstorms; and the fear of death. They did add a new phobia based on the response to this year's study: Nomophoia, the fear of being out of reach by mobile phone. (No signal!)

I will not go into the detailed explanations for each of these categories but suffice it to say, we are often most fearful of things that have the least probability of causing us harm. Do I have any personal phobias? I really am not too keen on noises that wake me up at night. Typically I'm not that tuned in unless I am home alone. You know. I usually have my protection laying right beside me. No. It's not a loaded weapon. It's my sweet little wife. I didn't say either one of us could do much but we do have a sense of security when we are there together. We also know that these fears that people have can be debilitating without regard to how real they may or may not be. The Apostle Paul addressed situations that bring stress and anxiousness into life, and he gave this admonition in the inspired letter he wrote addressed to the members of the local assembly meeting in Philippi, Greece: "Never worry about anything. But in every situation let God know what you need in prayers and requests while giving thanks. Then God's peace, which goes beyond anything we can imagine, will guard your thoughts and emotions through Christ Jesus." (Philippians 4:6-7, GODSWORD Translation of the New Testament)

Notice that Seventh Course!

I know. Those verses are much easier to read than to put into practice. At least we know where to start. Right? One thing is clear. We can never be confident in the world and what it provides as its answer to security and protection. The cliche' used most of the time is the Titanic which was advertised to be unsinkable. Little did people know that on that fateful evening the menu in the main dining room may have unwittingly anticipated what was up ahead. That's right. The salad course for that evening? Iceberg lettuce. I am aware that this was mere coincidence, however, it does remind us of the pitfalls when we place our ultimate trust in anything other than the God of heaven. I'm not saying we shouldn't travel by car or plane or even ship. I am saying we shouldn't go anywhere at anytime without the presence of our God being with us. When we do it that way we will always be okay, regardless of the outcome, and you can put a period on that one! Take care and you have my permission to kill off any of those bugs you happen to find. That's what I do. May God bless each one. Amen.  ....More later.