fear

ok so i just watched this awesome interview with shane claiborne on you tube where he talked about fear. shane quoted mother Theresa when she said "in the poor we see Jesus in his most distressing disguises. the interviewer then asked shane what that meant, and asked why people who have a heart for the poor are afraid and do not understand the poor. I LOVE what shane said in response! he said, "maybe its not so much that we are afraid as much as we dont know the poor. i think we are naturally afraid of what we dont know....we are always scared of the unfamiliar".

it got me thinking about some statistic i read that the number one fear in the world is the fear of the unknown. for me, the unknown always sounded like an alien or a UFO. but i really am beginning to see through my experiences in life that people are afraid of what we dont know. what we arent exposed to. what makes us uncomfortable. what pushes and challenges us. shane went on to describe how when you take kids from the inner city to go camping, they are afraid of the bogey man, yet when you take kids from suburban homes into the city- there is a fear that you are unsafe. i suppose its not to discount those fears altogether- the bogey man is quite the veiled threat. yet, we let our fears prevent us from seeking something that could change us forever- and in my opinion for the better.

i have been thinking a lot about how i have these fears about being in the heart of seattle- of living the city life after an entire lifetime and upbringing in peaceful rural areas (which i am so blessed to have been brought up in). but what am i afraid of? i am afraid of the unfamiliar. which when I look at it that way- seems silly. it will become familiar. it will become as easy as breathing at some point. and any bumps in the road will just strengthen me. so for the moment- i am feeling a little more at peace.

i guess my question to you is- what unfamiliar things are you afraid of? both physical and not- what in your life is preventing you from getting to know God in a more fulfilling way? and is it really worth holding those fears?

questions, questions.