I'm Gonna Love You Through It

I’m Gonna Love You Through it

Supporting other generations even if they are different

By Pastor Adam Fox

There are some television shows that you can watch over and over again and not loose interest in them: I love Lucy, Seinfeld, the Office and even Gravity Falls.

Gravity Falls follows the adventures of Dipper Pines and his twin sister Mabel who are sent to spend the summer with their great-uncle or "Grunkle" Stan in Gravity Falls, Oregon, a mysterious town full odd forces and weird creatures. The kids help Stan run "The Mystery Shack", the tourist trap which he owns, while also investigating the local mysteries.

This animated delight of a show pits two 12 year-olds who are filled with energy and curiosity and their great uncle Stan and his dishonest ways and routine. At times their seems to be a great amount of pressure or unnecessary toughness put upon Dipper by Grunkle Stan – which is not understood right away.

While Stan is purposefully tough or mean to his great nephew in order to prepare the boy for the adulthood and all that comes with it. This reasons for his actions are not understood till they are explained some time later in the show.

But this interaction between these animated characters to me mirrors what is happening in society today and even in the church itself. Older and younger generations are not seeing eye-to-eye and focusing on the differences.

There are many generations in our society today, each with creative names but some times it is hard to see where one generation stops and another starts. The main four generations to define and discuss are:

Baby Boomer Generation: 1946 – 1964

Generation X: 1965 – 1980

Millennial Generation: 1981 – 1996

Generation Z: 1997 – Current

I point out these dates to clarify the differences between the Millennials (which I am) and the Z generation. While I know the media and popular culture likes to lump them together and make them both the whipping boy for the ills of society – it is not accurate, fair or supportive.

While it is no surprise that like each person, each generation has a different set of values and beliefs from the others. Studies show that the Millennial generation emphasize the importance of the economy, education, de-emphasize sharing your faith, families and marriage. The added emphasis for this Millennial Generation on the economy and education is no surprise to me as student debit – which is a resultant of a want for education – is like a noose around my neck daily.

As of Q2 of the 2019 fiscal year, for borrowers ages 25 to 34—a significant share of the Millennial population—there was $497.6 billion in outstanding student loan debt for about 15.1 million borrowers. This translates to an average student debt of around $33,000 dollars for each borrower. 

With the price of college increasing and the student debt piling up, this generation has a shifting value than previous generation because of the cost of education and desire to better themselves.

If this is how things are in the world, with a new generation establishing themselves and what they bring to the table – why is the church getting swept up in the same kind of unsupportive and disrespectful discourse between the generations?

The growing divide in our American society is real and we can see it on a daily bases in terms of Presidential candidate choices, the Millennial ‘killing’ industries, or the importance of technology.

But are we the same in the church as in the world? I hope not.

While yes, it is clear by now that each generation prides itself on their own perspective on things and issues, that does not make one better than the other. I have always believed in a family approach to working with the next generations – or as Mark DeVries describes it, a cloud of witnesses for each students.

DeVries writes in his book Family-Based Youth Ministry that each student, each member of this youthful generation should have a stadium filled with supporters. The example he uses is a basketball game, the stands should not be his parents and the pastor there to support, love and encourage him. It should be filled with as many people in his life that care for him, his pastor and youth workers, family AND church family. Where each part of this cloud of supporters cheer him on and help him grow in his faith and make the youth WANT to be in church.

This has been a driving principle for me for how I minister to kids but it needs to not be limited to students. We need to take this approach to the entirety of the next generations too.

Over the past decade, the Millennial generation has had a high drop-out rate from the church during the high school and college time of their lives and rarely return to church. This should alarm you.

Millennials are a part of a growing trend of youth who are leery of traditional sources of authority like the church, which have been scrutinized for their various sex scandals and resistance to social change. The institution of “the church” is not automatically persuasive to today’s young adults.

But what gives me hope is this Family-Based Ministry approach that I believe more Christians and churches should take up is the overwhelming response to peer mentorship.

In Barna’s research on this subject, Resilient Disciples or Christians who have become entrenched in the church were significantly more likely than other respondents to say that they had adult friends in their congregations when they were young. That pattern of close relationships continues with them today: 88% agree that “the church is a place where I feel I belong,” and 85% that “there is someone in my life who encourages me to grow spiritually.”

These facts and studies of the church and Millennials should prove to all of us what needs to be done: adapt to reach this generation that is slipping away.

While I consistently promote a family based approach to ministry, by encouraging all of the Saints to be a friend, an encouragement, a supporter and a spiritual guide for each and every young adult and kid. The Bible show us many examples of how we can do that and one of my favorites is the beginning of the Shema in Deuteronomy 6.

The Shema is a daily Jewish prayer that was collection of speeches attributed to Moses before the next generation of Israel entered the Promised Land. Moses challenges them with his wisdom and warning because he doesn’t want these Israelites to repeat their parents’ mistakes.

⁴ “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one! ⁵ You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.

⁶ “And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart. ⁷ You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up. ⁸ You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. ⁹ You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.

For us as Modern Christians, this reminder of how to walk and act and how not live should be shown from one generation to the next. As spiritually mature Christians, that means showing these Godly characteristics to everyone. Just as Paul did to Timothy.

¹² Let no one despise your youth, but be an example to the believers in word, in conduct, in love, in spirit, in faith, in purity. ¹³ Till I come, give attention to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine. ¹⁴ Do not neglect the gift that is in you, which was given to you by prophecy with the laying on of the hands of the eldership. ¹⁵ Meditate on these things; give yourself entirely to them, that your progress may be evident to all. ¹⁶ Take heed to yourself and to the doctrine. Continue in them, for in doing this you will save both yourself and those who hear you.

We can see in the letters to the youthful pastor Timothy, that Paul needs to remind him that age should not limit him in how he lives and does. He – and we – should be encouragers like Paul, teachers in word and deed and supportive in the growth of this next generations.

As Christians, we are called to share the gospel to all around us, not just those of our peer group and belief set. It is not an optional thing. But speaking to the Millennial and Z generations, it also means willing to learn from others with a different mindset and background.

Each of us should be wanting to reach these lost younger generations, to help them understand that they need the Lord and His grace through faith. Is there a difference between generations – you bet, but that is not an excuse to not try.

For these older generations who have a want and desire to reach these younger generations for they need to be willing to try new ways. It is clear that Millennials have a unique sense of values and motivations and the ways of old are not always going to reach them.

While it may be a frightening thought to forge new ways and adapt to what has been the tried and true – but it is worth it if we can start reaching many of Millennials and Z for the Lord and stop the disappearing from the church that happens in there teenage years.

In the same breath, these youths need to be willing to be taught and come with an open mind and heart.

Generation differences are hard and it is easy to shift blame to another generation or make them the Achilles heel of all the worlds problem. The news and media do that. We cannot.

The evidence is plain. As a church, we need to help this generation like an older mentor to a younger mentee. Show them that we care for them, help them understand what they value and that we to care for the injustice of sin in the world and the like. Or for maybe the simplest step of all – talk to them and get to know them.

If I have learned anything from watching Gravity Falls, it is that while it is difficult to prove to the next generation that you care for them and love them and want them to succeed – it is not impossible. If or when you do reach them – do not stop with just the one soul reached, keep going.

Cheers and Excelsior!

Pastor Adam

***Flawless

***Flawless

Correcting the "bow down" nature we feel toward others

By Pastor Adam Fox

Andrea and I are considered "cord-cutters" since we do not pay for cable television - we mainly use streaming applications like HULU. As modern television viewers, we watch shows on our time and rarely with commercials. But lately, the genres we have been binging on documentaries and reality shows. 

Over the last few weeks we have spent time watching episodes about Whitewater Scandal, The Clinton Scandal, even on the Black Sox Scandal; or reality cooking shows or My 600 lb. Life. 

 

For some reason we are drawn to these types of shows lately but it may not be that puzzling or uncommon. It makes us feel better about ourselves, superior even. When I sit down at night and watch a documentary it takes me into a world or into the life of a person where something has gone wrong, a scandal has occurred or tragedy has hit them hard. By comparison then, I feel better as a cook, human, cleanliness and citizen and scandals bring that out of us.  

The word Scandal has come from the Greek word for "snare" - implying that one is snared into moral failure. Someone who is snared into moral failure sure sound an awful lot like a LOT of television shows. 

Why would we watch shows about people who are super-overweight, living in squalor, who have a very strange addiction or even who did something illegal? Because watching shows like this, reading or listening about people like this brings some level of entertainment and makes you feel better about yourself and your life situation.

For instance, I could watch a documentary on the Clinton-Lewinsky mess and enjoy the suffering of the people but also feel better about myself in the process.  The Germans know this feeling and have given it a specific term - Schadenfreude. Schadenfreude is defined as pleasure derived by someone from another person's misfortune.

Why do we enjoy Schadenfreude, other people’s misfortunes so greatly? I think it is because we enjoy feeling superior to that person or getting pleasure or joy from their situation. And friends, thinking of yourself as Superior to someone else is a dangerous and sinful thing.

The Bible is clear in calling out these type of emotions as sinful. The Bible speaks a great deal about all of us being equal and not one person or group of people being superior to another. Look at what Paul writes to the church in Galatians:

26 For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. 27 For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. 28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.

As Christians, men and women who have received forgiveness from God for our sins - we are all apart of one eternal family. We all have been forgiven for our sins, making each of us forgiven and equal – never showing partiality.

While there are plenty of shows from Hollywood that encourage us to believe we are better than this person, or this group – but the Bible is clear that we are not. God does not love me more than you or favor you over me – Godly Equality.

Paul had to remind the church in Roman to not think of themselves as better than others or superior to another but equal - just as God sees us. 

16 Be of the same mind toward one another. Do not set your mind on high things, but associate with the humble. Do not be wise in your own opinion.

God calls us to see other people as we see ourselves, as God sees us. We should not look at a person and see the flaws in their life and character but what God sees in them. Someone who needs kindness, love and forgiveness. 

So what does that mean for us? Are we to filter out the television shows and other forms of media that belittle and isolate the flaws of people so that we will feel better about ourselves? Are we to stop judging people on what they did but what they can be with a relationship in Christ Jesus. Those would be a good start. 

I think the first step would be changing why we are viewing others. We are not to watch the super-over weight person so that we can feel better about our bodies or watch the show about people who cannot cook so we feel better not being great at it. But instead, see these people as people who need help - physically, emotionally and Spiritually. 

In Luke 18, Jesus tells the story of  two men who go to the temple to pray - one a Pharisee and the other a Tax collector. 

9 Also He spoke this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others: 10 “Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, ‘God, I thank You that I am not like other men—extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this tax collector. 12 I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I possess.’ 13 And the tax collector, standing afar off, would not so much as raise his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me a sinner!’ 14 I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”

Scandal and people’s misfortunes will never go away, there will always be it in some form. Just like there will always be sin in this fallen world of ours. While it is tempting to digest television shows that broadcast these themes for the delight of the viewer. But that is just like temptation – it will always be there for us as Christians in some form or fashion but it is up to us to not fall into those temptation traps.

What we do need to remember in all this, real life and in television, that we are called to treat all men with love and kindness. The Bible tells us this often, look at Ephesians 4:32

And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you.

Or more directly in Philippians 2:1-4: Therefore if there is any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection and mercy, ² fulfill my joy by being like-minded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind. ³ Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself. ⁴ Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others.

As soon as we stop seeing ourselves as better than others and see people how God sees them, we will always be stuck wanting to be superior. We are not ***Flawless (sorry Beyonce) but we are forgiven. And as forgiven people, let us aim being more like God in all that we say, do and think. And that means stopping with the Schadenfreude and stop seeking pleasure derived by someone from another person's misfortune.

Cheers and Excelsior!

Pastor Adam

Lean on Me

Please, Lean on Me - when you're not strong

Life Lessons from Shazam!By Pastor Adam Fox

Every summer, Andrea and I try to get away for a little trip - a nerd-cation. Chicago has a yearly comic convention every August, Wizard World. It is a time for adults of all ages to come and engage there geekiness. There are times to shop for things that you need and those that you do not need, see artist, be with celebrities, listen to the finest of nerd discussions (my favorite is which is better: Star Wars or Lord of the Ring) and of course dress up in costume. 

This year my wife and I and my brother Steve went for the weekend, and had a blast. Shopping, dressing up, more shopping and of course listening to a discussion. The panel discussions are one of my favorite things to do and this year they did not disappoint. We got to sit in on a Star Wars talk, a Heroes TV show reunion and a chance to see the star of Chuck and Shazam!, Zachary Levi. 

Levi is an actor that has been around for a while in the TV and Film industry and was the star of one of my favorite shows Chuck. the plot of Chuck was simple and odd, the series was about an "average computer-whiz-next-door" named Chuck Bartowski, played by Zachary Levi, who receives an encoded e-mail from an old college friend now working for the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). The message embeds the only remaining copy of a software program containing the United States' greatest spy secrets into Chuck's brain, leading the CIA and the NSA to assign him handlers and use him on top-secret missions. Simple. 

I loved the show and wished that I was Chuck for many a year. So while at Comic Con, getting to hear him talk about his life and long Hollywood resume which includes Thor, Shazam and Tangled to name a few blockbuster hit films. 

While we were sitting and resting our tired feet, listening to so many questions from excited fans, an unusual question was asked to Mr. Levi. What is your favorite word? Okay so not a special question, but the answer shook me. Empathy. 

"Empathy. You can applaud that but more than applaud - let's go live that. Let's amen that by actually going and being love, kindness, grace, understanding and empathy in the world. Let's go and make the world a better place and it all starts with loving ourselves. We have got to love ourselves. Look in the mirror in the morning and tell yourself that you are so worthy of love and then build on that. When you start feeling stronger in your love, everyone around you will love so much more competently, more beautifully, so much more holy. It feels great. We do not have to be afraid of this world and the people they're telling us to be afraid of. We need to be afraid of being disconnected from one another instead. Go hug each other." 

After hearing Levi say these words of wisdom, these Godly words about how we are called to live it too k me a minute to process what just happened. Was Levi a Christian? If so, did he just witness to the thousand people in this room? Is he right?

That night I did some research and Zachary Levi is a Christian. His testimony is recorded in an interview in Relevant Magazine.  The interview shares that Levi accepted Jesus as his personal savior when he was 18. While his resume includes so many acting jobs in film and television but should also include hosting a weekly Bible Study in his Los Angles home. 

But are the words from Brother Levi true? Do we need to be better at being empathy? What does it even mean?  Empathy is the ability to understand and share the feelings of another. Empathy seems an awful lot like sympathy and compassion - but there is a big difference. 

Sympathy is a shared feeling, usually of sorrow, pity or compassion for another person. You show concern for another person when you feel sympathy for them. ... With empathy, you put yourself in another's shoes, often feeling things more deeply than if you just felt sympathy.

The key is we need to see things from the other's persons perspective and the Bible calls us to do the same thing. Paul calls us to do the same thing in Romans 12:15-16 Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep. Be of the same mind toward one another. Do not set your mind on high things, but associate with the humble. Do not be wise in your own opinion.

If we are participating in the emotional joys and sorrows of the person, we as Christians are fulfilling the Greatest Commandments of loving God with our all and loving our neighbor as our self. If we are loving others as God loves them, sharing in the emotions of the person it gives us an opportunity to share the love of God with them and that is key. 

We can see empathy and compassion that we need to display in the life and actions of our risen Lord, look at how Jesus interacted with a mourning mother in Luke 7: 11 Now it happened, the day after, that He went into a city called Nain; and many of His disciples went with Him, and a large crowd. 12 And when He came near the gate of the city, behold, a dead man was being carried out, the only son of his mother; and she was a widow. And a large crowd from the city was with her. 13 When the Lord saw her, He had compassion on her and said to her, “Do not weep.” 14 Then He came and touched the open coffin, and those who carried him stood still. And He said, “Young man, I say to you, arise.” 15 So he who was dead sat up and began to speak. And He presented him to his mother.

In verse 13, Jesus had compassion for the woman. This is HUGE, because it shows us that the God of the universe, the Creator and sustainer of all things sees, knows and understands what this woman is going through. The pain, the fear, the hurt, the worry and has compassion for her. Compassion in the original Greek is: ἐσπλαγχνίσθη(esplagchnisthe) which means for someone to be deeply affected in one's inner being, deep in the bowels. 

The compassion that Jesus had for this woman, a woman that He just met, is wonderful - but it is more than that. He has empathy towards her and her problems. This is the type of deep compassion and empathy that we are to have for all of humanity - one that stirs us from the deepest spot, from the bowels. 

The calling is clear, we are to show and be compassionate and empathic - just as Jesus was. But how can we do it, how can we be more compassionate and empathic? I think the first step is understanding before reacting. See why the person is reacting before lashing out and understand what they are going through before we discuss. 

Look at what the prophet Micah wrote to the nation of Israel that is sound advice to us as well.  

He has shown you, O man, what is good;

And what does the Lord require of you
But to do justly,
To love mercy,
And to walk humbly with your God? Micah 6:8

If we take this calling to the nation of Israel from the prophet Micah and live out our lives by acting justly with people, showing mercy to everyone and living our lives humbly with our God we will be different than the world and that I hope leads to others accepting Jesus as their personal savior.

While I am not telling you to never take a stand on your beliefs, but we need to see where the person is and coming from too. Being a Christian means being examples of God - all the time. It means showing mercy and kindness to people that we disagree with politically, socially, philosophically, heck even sports wise. 

Being empathic, showing mercy to people, sharing Godly justice to all, being the light and salt to a world that is blinded by Satan from the truth and most importantly, seeing things from their perspective. You and I can both hear the same message, but it may move you to tears and not me. The person that displays empathy and God-like character attempts to understand why this person is moved to tears instead of just telling them to shut up or be happy more. 

Let’s take a page from TV’s Chuck – Brother Zachary Levi – and be love, kindness, grace, understanding and empathy to all of mankind. And as he said, it starts with loving yourself. After all, God does an awful lot. He made you special and loves you for who you are. Share that truth with someone today. 

Cheers and Excelsior!

Pastor Adam

Don't Fear

Don't Fear (The Reaper) of Anything Else

How to be a Christian and be Fearless

By Pastor Adam Fox

Cinema has produced quite a few characters that invoke fear in us. From the terrifying likes of Jason or Freddy Kruger, to the dark lord of the Sith in Darth Vader. Then there are those that take fear and use them like Batman or Voldemort for good or evil purpose. Of all these types of fear based characters - Daredevil is the one who stood out to me. 

Daredevil or Matt Murdock is a character from Marvel comics who is a blind lawyer by day, and defender of Hell's Kitchen, New York by night. It was written by a few men, most famously and my favorites were Kevin Smith and John Romita Jr. Daredevil is a handicapped man who uses his other senses to overcome his blindness. Daredevil can do nearly anything because he is a man without fear. 

There are some days in which I would love to be daredevil, to live life without fear. Fear is something that we all can relate to and all have our own things that cause us to be afraid.  I get really freaked out each time I go on a plane or near a roller-coaster and studies show that I am not alone.

The most common fears are: 

1.  Snakes.  51% of us are afraid of them to some degree.

2.  Heights, 38%.

3.  The dentist, 23%.

4.  Confined spaces, a.k.a. claustrophobia, 21%.

5.  Needles, also 21%.

6.  Clowns, 18%.

7.  Public speaking, 17%.

8.  The dark, 15%.

9.  Flying, 14%.

10.  Birds, 5%. 

While I am not cool with easily five of the 10 listed hear - what about you? Fear is something that traps us, that causes us to be a prisoner in life. But should we be afraid? As a believer in God, does living in fear hurt my ministry or testimony?

I think it does. 

The enemy, Satan, loves to keep us in our fears and not grow in our faith. If we are afraid, filled with worry or anxiety we are not good examples of our Lord. If we let our anxiety or our worries or the dread of something in the future control us - we are trapped in our sin prisons and that is where Satan wants us to be.  

Satan enjoys seeing us worry and fear over money, health problems, things we cannot control, future stuff, work, relationships and so on. Instead we need to lean on what Scripture tells us, over and over again - do not fear. 

"The phrase “do not fear” (אַל־תִּֽירְאוּ; ʾal-tîrāʾ) occurs often as an encouragement or a call for courage. Joseph repeats the phrase twice when he reassures his brothers that he will not pay them back for selling him into slavery (Gen 50:19–21). The phrase is also used as a general encouragement to trust in God’s deliverance (Neh 4:14; Isa 35:4; Hag 2:5). Before battle, a priest was supposed to encourage the people to not fear since Yahweh was fighting for them (Deut 20:3–4). Moses encouraged the people with this phrase before they entered the land (Deut 31:6), and Joshua echoed this call for courage during the conquest of the land (Josh 10:25)." Lexham Theological Wordbook

As we can see in this brief look at the command to not fear, it is something that God shows us over and over again of where we need to be, to be fearless. Lets use my fear of heights as an example of how God wants us to live. 

God calls us to trust Him for all that we do and are and IF we are in a relationship with God that is based on our belief in the Risen Savior who died and rose again so that we can be eternally forgiven and a trust in the Almighty Creator who established and ordained all things we can be fearless. That then would mean, I can walk onto a plane and not burst out in sweat or freak out because I know that God is in control of all things, including me and this plane. 

Look at what God tells Israel in Isaiah 41 about not fearing because He is with them. 
8 “But you, Israel, are My servant,
Jacob whom I have chosen,
The descendants of Abraham My friend.
9 You whom I have taken from the ends of the earth,
And called from its farthest regions,
And said to you,
‘You are My servant,
I have chosen you and have not cast you away:
10 Fear not, for I am with you;
Be not dismayed, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you,
Yes, I will help you,
I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.’

This is a promise to Israel, but the principles can be applied to us in the Church Age today. God has chosen us, He will never leave us so then we have nothing to fear. How wonderful is this, How great is our God!

Living a life without fear is where I want to be as Christian but it is a daunting goal for me. Not letting my fear driven emotions deceive me into thinking that this plane that I am flying on could fall out of the air at any moment or has incompetent staff for instance. I should be replacing my fears with trust and love in God and knowing that God is my refuge.

Trust you would think is a no doubt obvious response for a believer in God. But trust can sometimes be like eating healthy or exercising. We want to do it but sadly not regularly. We trust God when things are great or fine we have a great amount of belief in God. But when things turn south, when life gets real - trust in God has a habit of shrinking. David show us that this should not be the case. Look at what David writes in Psalm 23: 4

Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil;
For You are with me;
Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.

Even in the moments of life in which David refers to walking in the shadow or the presence of death itself, He still has nothing to fear about. WOW! What a great example for us to live by, not letting fear overtake us but still trusting that God will protect us. David can walk in presence of this shadow because God is with him and David trusts that God will provide all the time. 

But Psalm 23 is not just about the great amount of trust that David has in God, it also shows us the love that David has for his God, for our God. 

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;
You anoint my head with oil;
My cup runs over.
6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
All the days of my life;
And I will dwell in the house of the Lord
Forever.

Psalm 23 is a classic Psalm of comfort in the toughest and saddest moments of out life, which is why it is a standard Scripture to be read at a funeral. But it has more to it than just in moments of grief. It can show us how to love God and others in every moment of life. Verses 5-6 ends this section of Scripture by showing us how to love even if we are filled with dread, afraid, worried or even just anxious, we can still have God's love. David shows this by describing the events of the 23rd Psalm. He has enemies around him and should be afraid but is still surround by God's love and that brings him joy and comfort. 

We can learn from David in dealing with our fears and letting or trust and love of God replace them and to also get comfort from knowing that God is our refuge. Psalm 91 shows us that we have nothing to be afraid of if we have a relationship with the Lord since God is our protector and defender. 

He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High

Shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.

I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress;

My God, in Him I will trust.”

Surely He shall deliver you from the snare of the fowler

And from the perilous pestilence.

He shall cover you with His feathers,

And under His wings you shall take refuge;

His truth shall be your shield and buckler.

You shall not be afraid of the terror by night,

Nor of the arrow that flies by day,

Nor of the pestilence that walks in darkness,

Nor of the destruction that lays waste at noonday.

What a comfort! If we have are part of God's family, we are in the arms of our God, protecting us from all that scare us, from all that make us want to run and hide. Look at how the author of Psalm 91 shows line by line at all the ways God protects His beloved from the attacks of the Devil. Praise God and Amen. 

Fear is something that we all have, some are more common than others but all need to be addressed. We cannot pretend we are not scared or bothered by anything. If a snake dressed as a clown turned off the lights in a small plane while I am taking an exam in my underpants - the worst possible fear chain - most of us would be terrified for a while. But staying in those fears, letting them control us is not healthy. 

We need to learn how to be fearless and let God into the areas of our life that Satan controls. It is not easy but learning how to trust more, to love more, to dwell in the refuge that is our God is worth all the growing pains that come with it. 

So what do you fear and how can you allow God access these areas of your life? How can we be more like Daredevil - the man without fear. While I do not expect to see anyone jumping off of buildings at night to fight evil ninjas or crime lords ( I can see Jerry Miller doing this actually but please do not). But we need to be Christians that are fearless and not letting our fears control us. 

Don't fear the Reaper my friends or any other Blue Oyster Cult song reference. But let us all aim to be a godly Matt Murdock - a Christian without fear!

Cheers and Excelsior!

Pastor Adam