A Scary Frog

"Dad, it's a scary frog!"  Victoria said excitedly, holding up a little stuffed tree frog.  "It is going to eat you!"

"Oh dear," I said, pretending to tremble with fear.

This apparently was the right response, because her voice got a little louder.  "He's coming to eat you!  He's coming to eat you!"

And so it went over the next five minutes as the stuffed frog approached me, but never actually ate me.  In fact, he didn't seem even interested in nibbling on me.

Now, I can honestly say that I have never been frightened of stuffed frogs.  I'm not even afraid of real live frogs, even though I know that I know that there are very poisonous ones, like the Poison Dart Frog.  I have never once, in my whole life awakened in the middle of a nightmare shaking with terror because a large and terrible frog was pursuing me.

Victoria isn't scared of frogs either.  On the other hand, she is greatly afraid of insects.  I was trying to get her to go into the house the other day and she wouldn't move.  "I'm scared," she told me."

"Of what?"  I asked, scanning the yard and trees for some wolverine, bear,  or other terrifying creature.

"Of that," she said pointing at the ground a few feet in front of us.

I couldn't see anything at first, but then, there on the ground, I saw a little gray sow bug, headed to his place of business.

"There's nothing to be afraid of," I said, taking her hand.

"No," she said, resisting.  "I'm afraid."

In that moment, I picked her up and carried her into the house, past the scary sow bug and any other insects she hadn't noticed.

Each one of us has fears.  Perhaps it is a phobia of heights, spiders, or of tight places.  Maybe it is more worries about life events, like a fear of cancer, poor health, or bad finances.  The hard part is what to do with these fears.

For the most part, I think we try to avoid them.  Tree frogs (at least in Virginia) seem to be pretty easy to avoid.  Many other terrors are difficult to stay away from and linger in the backs of our minds causing anxiety about the present and the future.

Psalm 56:3 says, "When I am afraid, I will put my trust in You."

That, I suppose, is the key.  Our trust may not be very strong, but if our Father is strong then it is enough.  My heavenly Father is exactly that.

When I am not strong enough to even put my hand in His and allow Him to lead me past my fears, He will gently pick me up and carry me to a place of safety.

That's the beauty of faith.  It gives courage for each situation, not because I am so great, but because God is.

When I am afraid, I will trust in Him.

Always.