Fear

An ancient legend tells of a man traveling in his carriage to Constantinople. Suddenly in the middle of the road an old man appears, wearing a heavy cloak and hood, his arms stretched high to the heavens. The traveler brings his carriage to an abrupt halt, and the strange figure appears at the traveler's side. His eyes burning, he says, "Take me to Constantinople!"
"Who are you?" the traveler demands.
The hooded figure says, "My name is Cholera. Take me to Constantinople!"
The traveler draws back in terror. "No!" he shouts with a trembling voice. "You will kill the city!"
"I could kill you now," Cholera whispers. "But take me to Constantinople, and I promise I will kill only five people."
Reluctantly, the traveler bids the old man get into the carriage and delivers him to Constantinople.
Two weeks later 120 people have died in the city. Meeting Cholera on the street one day, the traveler accosts him and shrieks, "You lied! You said you would kill only five people."
Cholera shakes himself loose from the traveler's grip. "I didn't lie. I kept my promise. I killed only five. Fear killed the rest."
Biologists believe that fear is among the first and strongest emo­tions developed in man and animal. We see this clearly when we are confronted with sickness, suffering and death. We fear not just death, but illness itself. We fear a life filled with chronic pain or disability.
Christ never says to us, "Don’t fear, here is a million dollars," or "Don’t fear, here is a miraculous drug." He says, "Don’t fear. It’s me. Trust me." Jesus' presence always drove out fear and it still does. Our greatest strength during times of suffering and death is the presence of Jesus.
 -Pastor Dino Griffin