Don't Be Afraid - Good Tidings On the Way

 In recent days, I've been pondering the deeper meaning behind those blessed angel-words, "Don't be afraid." Written all over Scripture, they are intended to teach us the true message of God's intent always: to calm our fears. So it shouldn't surprise us that, over and over again, the first greeting He instructs His heavenly messengers to say to unsuspecting humans is one of comfort. 

Ever since the beginning of time, fear has run the worldly universe. From our first parents in the Eden-garden buying the satanic lie that God was holding out on them, all of us (their generational children) have each, in our own way, followed suit - believing in different ways that God is insufficient and so are we. The fear of "not enough" has underlined every thought and action... 

Not enough God.

Not enough love.

Not enough physical beauty.

Not enough food.

Not enough acceptance. 

Not enough confidence.

Not enough safety. 

Not enough hope.

Not enough life.

Not enough money.

Not enough...us. 

Just simply, not enough everything. 

And so we walk around, saddled with this insecure side of ourselves, perceiving threats everywhere to our happiness and peace, misreading situations, and trying to fill the void with things we've told ourselves will fix everything. Make up for the lack. Remove our fear altogether. 

At the end of the day, we're all on a journey where, deep inside, what we most long for is... enough. What we crave the hardest is to be given the permission to let fear loosen its grip and to relax into a state of belonging and satisfaction we only dream of. 

Fear has robbed many a sincere soul of their faith, teaching them to abide in a constant state of uneasiness when, in reality, Peace has been offered to them already. Hope has been waiting for them to see it and take heart. Love has been ready to burst in and change everything. Joy has been expectant of goodness yet to come. 

And here's the theme I've noticed as angel after angel in the scriptures came to address faithful ones in need of a word from God: with each message came a hidden truth - "don't be afraid" was almost always accompanied by an affirmation of God's favor. You don't have to live in fear because He is with you. And in no greater way was this demonstrated than in the angelic chorus on the night of Christ's birth when they announced to frightened shepherds that there was no reason to panic, to reason to be paralyzed by dis-ease because "good tidings of great joy" were upon mankind. Good news of the redemptive sort was at hand. God is on the move so therefore, you can take a breath. You can live in the moment. You can believe that, with Him, there is never a question of enough.

As we approach Christmas, I realize that the days we're living in can very easily, cause us to be afraid. To notice lack. To be discouraged. To lose heart. Uncertain worldly events agitate our supposed sense of comfort and convince us that what we hold most dear isn't so sure anymore. Yet, in the midst of it all, the message God is sending to us is still the same: "fear not; for behold, I bring you tidings of great joy which shall be for all the people." Why? "For unto you is born this day, in the city of David, a Savior which is Christ the Lord." 

Good news is always on the way. Even in the face of every bad, hard thing that can be imagined, the best is always still to come. Hope is on the march. And we know this because even when it looked the darkest in history, God was about to send His only Son to enter the world and defeat sin's curse forever. That, friends, is why we can always tell our trembling hearts to take heart. Because God is always enough and there is never not enough and what those angels of old reminded our ancestors of still rings true today: don't be afraid, for good tidings are on the way.