I Am Not Afraid of My God

I have a real problem with the concept that God put us here to satisfy some dark sadistic need to have a specie cower in fear, throughout their existence, at the very thought of him.  I would rather think that we would spend our time wanting to make our Father proud, than to worry about angering a supreme deity that could squash us at any moment.  I suppose, if you buy into the whole "fear God" thing, one would have to constantly be asking themselves, "Why?"

"To fear is to have more faith in your antagonist than in Christ."

-- D.L. Moody (1837-1899), "The Overcoming Life"

I have better things to do with the life God gave me than to worry about that which God already knows, after all, God knows everything, right?  Like any father, God hopes that we utilize the tools bestowed upon us, but knows that we will have to fall and get back up again before we finally "get it" and succeed.  Why would you fear a father that offers unconditional love?

Brad Miner, is an author and senior editor of The Catholic Thing.  I both agree and disagree with his opinions, but find his insight interesting and thought provoking.  His latest post, Afraid of God, did not disappoint.

In the article, he does what Catholics are famous for, he quotes those that Catholics have to thank for instilling this fear of God deep into our faith.  Is it any wonder why, after several thousand years, mankind has no progress toward peace and tranquility as we constantly bicker over who is more right in order not to offend God?  Is it just me, or is it more logical we might have progressed further if we had just concentrated on doing the right thing, creating beauty, and making the most out of our world?  God gave us all of the tools to make this happen, and then we let ego get in the way.  If we're not letting ego distract us, we're blaming God for falling short.  Do we really want to go there?

This seems to be a typical advertisement from religion baiters, God haters or hard liner atheists.  I don't disagree with it at all, but this is an example of both hitting the nail on the head while missing the entire piece of wood.  God gives us the tools to stop the rape of our children, but religion baiting with ads like this is not making use of those tools.  It would be like holding a bucket while standing on the dock watching everyone else bail a sinking boat and criticizing them for not having enough buckets.  The folks in the boat feel it can be saved, but you standing on the dock criticizing won't help.  You have the tools. God gave you a bucket.  Get in the boat and stop finding excuses to not take ownership over the fact that you have a bucket and are letting the boat sink.

If God steps in at every turn to rescue us from our fiascos when we're too dense to use the available tools to rescue ourselves, we would just sit in the boat and wait for God to bail us out.  When you think it out, the boat would have never been built as God would have constantly provided everything for our existence.  Oh, wait, Garden of Eden, right?  Well, we screwed that up and there are those that obviously still blame God for us not following the rules.

So, on the other hand, this advertisement is actually a statement in support of my argument.  If I could stop a child from being raped, I would, because God has given me the righteous tools to accomplish this feat.  It is a waste of God's gifts not to make use of them. 

I'm a great one for stating that, God helps those that help themselves.  But, God already has.  God has given us the tools, the knowledge, to make everything right.  We have only to start down that path to rediscovery of that which we lost.  It is like looking for the glasses that are perched on our heads.  We have them already, we simply have to look in the mirror to realize what we thought was lost was around us all the time.  Our wanting to look in the mirror, and then actually doing it, is just more trouble than constantly cursing God for not just showing us the way.

I prefer to take ownership of my time here on Earth.  It has taken time for me to understand this.  For everything we do, or don't do, there will be consequences.  Consequences can manifest in many ways, including the death and suffering of the very young and innocent.  These consequences are reminders of what has been done wrong, or right.  Death of the innocent is a necessary, albeit cruel, reminder of the wages of sin and the loss of Eden.

"Fear has to be the opposite of God because it is the opposite of love.  Fear is selfish, needy and focused on you.  It makes no sense for God to want you in fear about Him or your life. 

It comes down to this:  either God wants you to live in fear of Him, always afraid you aren't good enough and focused on yourself, or He wants you to live in love, knowing you are safe, and focused on loving other people.  Which feels more accurate to you?"

-- Kimberly Giles, "Choosing Clarity: The Path to Fearlessness"

I know what is right and what isn't.  I know what is expected of me, and I know that I have fallen short of the mark.  Does this scare me for the judgment to come?  No.  My faith in God is like my faith in my father.  I will be shown the error of my ways, given kudos for having already recognized my shortcomings, and I will be put back on the path to continue my journey and hopefully do better next time.  The only fear is in having to repeat the same task over and over again like some sack of hammers.  But, even this fear will do nothing for God's plan but slow the wheels of progress.  God's house won't get built if I keep hammering at the nails and missing the wood, and the boat will sink if I constantly complain and find fault without ever getting into the boat to bail.

I love my God for giving me the opportunity to muck this life up.  I hope I learn enough so I don't muck it up as much next time around, and there will be so many next times.  This is the loving forgiving God I believe in.  All God asks is for us to do, even though God knows we might fail.  Without trial and error there can be no knowledge; without knowledge there can be no doing; without doing, no progress, and without progress we will never find God's kingdom, which is right where we left it.  We need to stop assigning blame for our short memory.

As for fearing God, I leave you with one last thought, to remind you of the thought at the start of this post, a thought which everyone fearing God should chew on:

"For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind."

-- 2 Timothy 1:7

Note from Pastor Tony, the founder of the Congregation for Religious Tolerance, as well as the author and editor of "The Path," the Congregation's official blogsite:  

Before you go getting your panties in a bunch, it is essential to understand that this is just an opinion site and, as such, can be subjected to scrutiny by anyone with a differing opinion.  It doesn't make either opinion any more right or wrong than the other.  An opinion, presented in this context, is a way of inciting others to think and, hopefully, to form opinions of their own, if they haven't already done so.

It is my fervent hope that we keep open and active minds when reading opinions and then engaging in peaceful, constructive, discussion and debate in an arena of mutual respect concerning the opinions put forth.  After over twenty years as a military intelligence analyst, planner, and briefer, I have come to believe engaging each other in this manner and in this arena is the way we will learn tolerance and respect for differing beliefs, cultures, and viewpoints.

We all fall from grace, some more often than others; it is part of being human.  God's test for us is what we do afterward, and what we learn from the experience.
  

Frank Anthony Villari, Pastor