Don’t let the fear steal away the wonder.
I have always loved the ocean. Growing up close to it it was impossible to not love it. I would read about it and study it, I even would steal my grandfather’s National Geographic magazines, but to be honest I love all nature….except biting insects like say sand flies. As a kid I used to jump into any body of water without thinking too hard about it, it was wonderful! My parents would keep spare cloths in the car because they knew I would get wet. Then it happened. I was swimming in the Lake at our cabin and something hurt! It really hurt! My spidey sense said get back to shore so I did. My neoprene wet suit had a hole right where my pain was, this was a fresh water lake, turned out I had been bitten by a large pike, he was like the jaws of the lake and has struck others to this day. Okay, so maybe it hasn’t been the same fish, but suddenly I realized that the fish I had swam with all those years while note caring could hurt me. That never kept me out of the water but it did make me think twice before going in. This was just a small loss of wonder to be replaced by fear, but what about all the other things we suddenly fear as we grow up and understand more? Things that sent a chill of excitement now send a chill of fear. Why? Because our childish ignorance has been replaced by knowledge and that scares us. Don’t let the fear win. Do the things you used to do without thinking that now scare you. Speak up when you see an injustice, tell that friend about Jesus, give away to those in need when you feel led to, ride that roller coaster, talk to that family member that you feel distant from, swim with the fish. Don’t let the fear win the place your wonder deserves. Live. That’s what God created you to do!
Carried in the cross 