"The psalmist doesn't try to explain evil. He doesn't try to minimize evil. He simply says he will not fear evil. For all the power that evil has, it doesn't have the power to make him afraid."(F.Buechner "Listening to Your Life" p. 180)
As a child I am sure I was afraid of many things, usually other people especially ones my own age. Being a fairly easy target for bullies I may have had some level of justification. I eventually got tougher, though not happier.
In sports I was also afraid. Probably why I never really learned to catch a baseball or hit one, just afraid. I was a horrible goalie because I was afraid to dive for the ball. Funny thing was in college I became a good goalie because someone got me past my fear.
I'm not a big fan of thrills or horror movies. But I'm no longer afraid.
I don't have a lot of fear of anything these days. I don't live a care free existence by any stretch of the imagination, but I do move forward in life. I may get apprehensive and slow down, but I'm not paralyzed by fear.
What I've noticed most about overcoming fears, is how much it cannot be done alone. And that may be the most important message the psalmist, especially the one who wrote Psalm 23 really got. I'm never alone even in those times when I should be most afraid.
Blessings,
Ed
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