Fear

Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. 
 -- Psalms 23:4

What are you afraid of? Be honest. Some of the things I'm afraid of:

What others might think of me
Falling--of failing God and friends
Messing up God's plan for my life
Stepping out of my comfort zone
That things won't get better
An unknown future

Really, I'm afraid of the dark. Not literal darkness (though that can sometimes be pretty scary too), but the darkness that clouds our everyday lives. I don't know what will happen tomorrow. I don't know what other people will think of me. I don't always know what is right. There's a darkness over this world hiding the way things should be and we're afraid of it. We call this darkness "reality".

Sure, all this spiritual talk about light and darkness and faith and how everything belongs to God sounds really nice, but you have to face the facts. We live in reality, not fairytale land. There's bills to pay, mouths to feed, people to impress. All this stuff we have to worry and stress about because that's the way things are. That's reality.

"The uninhibited dream, which is in revolt against reality and its limitations, is the most substantive truth of existence." -- Jewish tradition

We live our lives trying as best we can to avoid death and pain and suffering. It makes us uncomfortable. It reminds us that we are mortal, that our lives are fragile--that we have no control. We've created this illusion that somehow by worrying about this and that we can guarantee ourselves another day of our comfortable lives.

What if you knew God as well as you know your earthly father or best friend? Take a moment to really think about this---the God of the universe speaking with you face to face. How would life be different? I think maybe the problem is we don't really know God.

that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead.  -- Philippians 3:10-11

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Love

What is our reaction to this incredible world our God has created? It should be to ask, "Who is the one who created all this?" I mean we know who He is in name. But who is He really? The Psalm I quoted at the end of the last post continues:

The instruction of the LORD is perfect, reviving the soul; the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple; the precepts of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart; the commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes; the fear of the LORD is clean, enduring forever; the rules of the LORD are true, and righteous altogether. More to be desired are they than gold, even much fine gold; sweeter also than honey and drippings of the honeycomb. 
 -- Psalms 19:7-10

According to Jewish commentators, "after recounting the wonders of creation, the Psalmist says that all of this is merely an example of the greatness of Torah--the blueprint that enables man to understand God's will and fulfill it." Torah tells us who God is. All of creation speaks of its Creator, each a unique strand His grand story. But when we move from admiring creation for its own sake to seeking to know the one who created it--that is when we begin to understand what it means to love God.

I don't mean intellectually know. We're quite good at that, reducing everything about creation and God to a bunch of equations and doctrines. I mean to know Him as a person. That can be hard to grasp considering that we cannot see or hear God (especially for very "logical" minded people like me). It's kinda like trying to get to know someone who is away on a long trip--a very long trip. In a way, that's how it is. We're in exile or as the kabbalists put it, God is in exile. His presence is withdrawn from us.

But I'm getting ahead of myself now. It all starts with the Awe of God. From there it grows into a burning desire to know Him more.

One thing have I asked of the LORD, that will I seek after: that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the LORD and to inquire in his temple.  -- Psalms 27:4

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