Fear can grip us can’t it? People can have a fear of all manner of things – heights, spiders, crowds, being alone, the future, certain people, being locked in, lifts…

Reflecting on one of the very real fears some people face, I once penned:
‘The day pulls on a velvet cloak
And night begins to fall
And so does fear begin
To dance
Its
Icy
Masquerade’

Recent talk of nuclear war and bombs in the hands of unpredictable leaders can make us all naturally anxious and some people perhaps really afraid. When I was a child people around me often shared stories of the 2nd World War and it made me nervous about going to bed and turning out the lights. I developed a routine of looking under the beds and in the wardrobe several times before I could go to sleep. It was a while before I grew out of that. (I’m OK now thankfully!).

But whilst I still have natural concerns about various things, fear does not grip me. I am so thankful to have a solid faith in God through Jesus Christ and because of that I believe that whatever happens, my future is ultimately in His hands – in this world and the next. The psalmist had this trust too. He said ‘When I am afraid, I will trust in you..in God I trust; I will not be afraid. Psalm 56:3,4. Jesus said to those who believed in him ‘ And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age’. Matthew 28:20 And with this promise I am comforted – that God is with me – whatever happens.

Rev Julie Shimizu

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