Duck And Cover?

"Then the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled for fear of the Jews, came Jesus and stood in the midst, and saith unto them, Peace be unto you. And when he had so said, he shewed unto them his hands and his side. Then were the disciples glad, when they saw the Lord. (John 20:19-20 KJV)

It was about twenty years ago. I had escorted a car load of teenage boys from the correctional facility to a worship service in town one evening.  As we left the church a car passed by and backfired. The boys hit the ground! I had no clue as to why they were all suddenly laying on the sidewalk as it did not occur to me that it had sounded like a gunshot. 

On another occasion I was escorting three of the youth to a local High School to take GED exams. I took a wrong turn in town and turned around in someone's driveway. If you guessed that they all ducked and covered you would have guessed right! What a world we live in when children have to duck and cover for fear of their lives! 

I watched an episode of Quantum Leap last night. Sam Beckett was transported to a time when there was extreme fear of a Nuclear Bomb being dropped on America. Some of you probably remember that time and particularly the fear and panic that came with the Cuban Missile Crisis. During the 1950's and 1960's we were taught to duck and cover in the public school systems just in case there was a nuclear attack. I remember those drills. I am still not quite sure how hiding under a desk is going to protect anyone from a nuclear blast and the radiation fallout that would accompany it. But, I guess in the state of such heightened fear it may give people comfort to think that they can actually do something about it.

In his first inaugural address President Franklin Roosevelt said, "So, first of all, let me assert my firm belief that the only thing we have to fear is...fear itself — nameless, unreasoning, unjustified terror which paralyzes needed efforts to convert retreat into advance."

Now, anyone who knows me well knows that I am all about taking preventive measures; but, those preventive measures are so that one can keep moving forward. They should not stop us in our tracks and keep us from living the life that God has given us. 

After Jesus was crucified, his disciples hid out. They locked themselves in a room in fear that they would be the next to be executed. Fear paralyzed them until Jesus showed up. Even though the door had been locked there Jesus stood in the midst of them. He who was killed just a few days prior stood among them alive! They were no longer afraid. They were blessed with the peace that was needed to go forward; to go and share with the whole world that Jesus had risen from the grave and that all of God's promises of a savior and his kingdom were true. 

Do not let fear so overwhelm you that you cannot move forward; doing the will of God. Understand that God is with you always.  Know that he can and will bless you with peace through Jesus Christ our Savior and Lord. As St. Paul wrote to the Philippians: "Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." (Phil 4:6-7 NIV)

God's Peace - Pr. J