How does one find courage in the face of uncertainty?
With a lot of talk around whether or not the United States will hit its debt ceiling, we should remember the wise words of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy: Don’t Panic.
Things may get rough, but many other books can help keep you motivated. It will sometimes take more than memes to keep our hopes alive. There are leadership books and poetry. Yes, these can inspire and keep your heart standing in rough times. In the face of things, however, sometimes all we need is someone telling us to stop worrying about tomorrow (Matthew 6:34).
While it’s neat that “fear not” is written 365 times in the Bible, it’s the fact Scripture addresses worry at all that can give us strength.
We can also look into what this world has survived before as a source of comfort.
Self-Help or Holy Word
Even if you do not believe, consider this; Scripture has been around before the Bible was printed in full. These words have been passed down for over two millennia and are published worldwide. It has valuable advice even if you don’t believe it is the Word of God. Even some seasoned Christians have problems dealing with multiple translations and ask plenty of questions.
So let’s ask ourselves why this book is so timeless.
The book of Proverbs gives a lot of advice that carries over to modern times, and it can be simple to follow when everything seems to be collapsing all around you. The concept of having a sense of empathy for situations that happen in our own lives is what keeps the Bible timeless.
It gives people power and emotional strength. Unfortunately, in some circumstances, it has been used as a brutal political weapon, inspiring people to do unspeakable wrongs. The problem lies in the person using it. The devil can twist scripture, so what’s stopping people from doing the same?
“And saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone.”
Matthew 4:6 KJV
While some may use scripture as a toxic weapon, that certainly doesn’t mean it’s all it’s suitable for. Many parts of scripture talk about what we can do with God on our side, but it also addresses the power of seeking wisdom. The Ten Commandments remind us of basic morality. Even seeing the screw-ups of the kings of Israel can make us feel better about ourselves and our situation. Nothing puts things in perspective faster than looking at a story and saying; at least I’m not that guy.
Looking at History
New problems can bring things we aren’t prepared for. The kicker is that humanity has dealt with many new issues and survived.
The Black Plague destroyed 30% to half of Europe’s population [1]. We have dealt with similar matters, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, and were able to contain it.
Many worry about the domino effects of this — war in particular. We have survived the world going to war twice. World War II had an estimated 35-60 million direct deaths. That was more than double World War I in the same century [2].
I don’t say that to cause fear; I say it to put into perspective the fact we have almost 8 billion lives here on Earth today. We have many problems, and history shows more problems may arise.
Yet still, here we are.
Scary things happen that some may even blame God for. But think about it: particularly when it comes to war, those are problems caused by man. The good thing is issues caused by man can also be solved by them with God’s help.
It is not the bad things that destroy us; it is mankind’s reaction to bad things.
You Can Do This
There is comfort in the Bible, so don’t write it off even if you are skeptical of how politicians and others have tried to twist its words.
Perhaps it won’t get as ugly as we fear because we know mankind has survived much. Even the scare of the pandemic was blunted because of the knowledge that came from previous plagues.
Personal calamity will always arise. In this, know you are not alone. Be sure to turn to trusted advisors and friends, as well as the myriad of resources available online.
References
[2] https://www.britannica.com/topic/history-of-Europe/The-blast-of-World-War-II