Sleeping Through The Light

Whether you agree with his politics or not, FDR was right on target when he said, in his inaugural address: “The only thing we have to fear is fear itself.” Fear makes us do strange things, like close our eyes and pretend that “it” isn’t there, or run away, or stick our heads in the nearest sandbox. Fear dictates behavior, distorts realty, and denies basic human values like justice and mercy. Fear is contagious.

I think of this today because the Suday aproaching is called “Palm Sunday” in the Christian tadition. That day commemorates history’s most powerful story of fear-defiance. Take a moment to read Matthew 21 if you need the details. In that New Testament passage, you will find a story that breathes contemporary air every day. A timeless story. A moving story. A very challenging story. Anybody seen a sandbox nearby?

Jesus refuses to bow the knee to the Caesar of his day. He intentionally and knowingly chooses a course of action that has only one possible outcome, a result that most of us try hard to deny or dodge. I doubt if Jesus called a Disciple Conference and took a vote on whether he should show up in Jerusalem and appear to challenge Caesar and the Roman Army. He knew what was right and he did it. And don’t miss the meaning of the story that Luke tells in his chapter 22. It makes the same point. Jesus, filled with anguish and facing a very uncertain future, goes off by himself to pray and seek wisdom. His disciples are tired and they stay behind. The only thing Jesus asks is that they stay awake and watch while he struggles with this life-changing decision. “Stay awake, please.” Stay watchful. Stay alert to the moment. But the story teller, Luke, says they all fell asleep. Granted they were tired, but they were not stupid. They knew the context of that moment. They sensed what might be just around the next corner. And they were scared almost to death. So, what do they do? Anybody seen the nearest sandbox? They slept. Maybe if we just close our eyse, “it” will go away. Perhaps if we pretend “it” isn’t there, it won’t be.

Fear is in the sandbox business. Fear succeeds every time you and I hold that rabbit’s foot in crossed fingers while we wish upon a star. Fear wants me to go to sleep, in fact, Because when my eyes are closed to the fear I want to deny, I can’t see the light on the horizon. A glimmer. A faint signal. Light is fear’s worst enemy.

Whatever the size and severity of the fear you face, it will still be there when you open your eyes. Sometimes the only thing to do is mount up, move on, and follow the Light. Sometimes it’s the only thing to do.