Fear Not!

“You know how many ‘Fear Nots’ there are in the Bible?”

“How many?”

“365, one for every…”

“day of the year.”

There is a fear not in the Bible for everyday in the year, and yet, we do it, we fear. This conversation was one I had with an amazing lady at my church this past Sunday. I was telling her how the Lord had used Isaiah 43 in my life this past week. This week was one of those weeks where I needed to fear not the most. My life changed in an instant. I got a call on Tuesday night from my father right after our weekly Campus Crusade meeting.

“Mom was in a car accident.”

My dad had said only three sentences by the time we hung up, but those three sentences sent me into shock. This past week my mom was hit by an off-duty state trooper. One who was texting and driving drunk. The moment after my dad told me of my mother’s mishap I realized that I could be planning a funeral. But I wasn’t. About an hour later, I talked to my mom from the hospital. Only 15 stitches and bruises later she returned back home.

We all hear so often on the news the stories of the fatalities of drunk driving. My mom could have been another statistic. The only thing that I can attribute to my mom still being alive is God. By God’s grace and protective hand my mom wasn’t killed out on Highway 12.

It was a scary ordeal for sure. It was shaking. Yet, all of a sudden my homework seemed unimportant, everything was unimportant, only my mom mattered. My mom and the amazing God that I serve who kept her. I said that God used Isaiah 43 to comfort me this week, and I’m going to write it here for you.

"Fear not, for I have redeemed you;

I have called you by name, you are mine.

When you pass through the waters, I will be with you;

and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you;

when you walk through fire you shall not be burned,

and the flame shall not consume you.

For I am the LORD your God,

the Holy One of Israel, your Savior.

Isaiah 43: 1b-3a

PS I now have a celebrity mom. Pray that mom has the opportunity to share the gospel with him :)

Woman, why are you weeping?

Easter, so good. Although I find myself lacking motivation to be here at school again. Only four weeks of classes left. Yet, so much to do in all of that.

I think that my favorite part of the Easter story, when after Jesus is risen and how he reveals himself to people. This may sound bad, but sometimes I laugh at the awkwardness that arises. Jesus knows who all these people are, but for some reason, probably because they think he's dead, they never recognize him. I think my favorite one, that shows to me Jesus' tenderness is in John 20:11-18.

Let's set the stage: Mary is outside of the tomb crying, she's weeping. It seems like a semi-normal thing for a woman, or anyone for that matter to be doing outside of a tomb. We accept this as normal. Why is she crying? Jesus, the Messiah, a man who delivered her from demons was put to death most horrifically, and the worst part was that he had broken no law. She looks into the tomb and sees two men (who we know as angels) one at the place where Jesus' head had been, and one where his feet had laid. Anyone who's friend had just died would probably be sobbing. Maybe very few actual tears, but instead those sobs that wrack the body-Mary's sorrow was apparent, we know that for sure.

The angels say to her, "Woman, why are you weeping?" I wonder what her reaction to this question was-more tears, frustration that they didn't understand. She says, "They have taken my Lord and I don't know where they have laid him."

She turns around, maybe to leave, we don't really know, but she sees another man. He says to her, "Woman why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?" I think my reaction to this would have been something like hurt rage. People all around me asking me why I'm crying...can't you see I'm mourning? Can't you see that I came here to visit my friend's tomb. He's not here, dead people don't just disappear.

Thinking that this man is the gardener she says, "Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away." What happens next is so sweet. This man, Jesus, says nothing, but one word. "Mary". This one word causes rememberance, just like you most definitely recognize a friend's voice on the phone, or your parent calling to you across the way. I love that Jesus didn't show Mary his side and his hands, he didn't come to her and tell her all these facts about her life that no one but he could know. No, he just had to say her name.

She knew in an instant that it was Jesus. I wonder if the weeping stopped that moment when the realization dawned on her, or if even a smile broke across her face as she said "Rabboni", teacher.

I wonder if we too don't recognize Jesus as often as we should. We go through life. We mourn our circumstances, the passing of a loved one, no money in the bank, frustration and confustion towards the future. I wonder how many times Jesus calls our name. What if we listened and turned towards him and said, "teacher" and really allowed Him to be our hope, to bring us through whatever it is. What if we remembered at all times the hope Mary found at seeing her once-dead Savior alive again?

May that hope reign in our hearts!

Kimberly