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 PrintableVersion Letter from AmericaSpores on the doorsA threat that's hard to assess is a fear that's hard to keep away. The fear of the unknown is a primeval instinct of humanity. Such fears have been played upon in years past by documentaries and movies about biological warfare. The fact that some such tactic seems to have been employed by terrorists, and that some people have actually died from anthrax infection, means that there is a new cloud of unease hanging over American heads. Of course, the likelihood of contracting anthrax is negligible, especially compared to other risks that we daily run. But that this risk, unlikely as it may be, is delivered by way of the mail and whose victims seem so random brings all within its scope of fear. The visit of the mailman certainly has a new dynamic to it these days in America. Few things could have been better calculated to unsettle the ordinary citizen than a deadly infection spread by the mail that in its early signs of contagion is practically indistinguishable from the 'flu. Uncertain timesWhat is the Christian to do in such uncertain times? The Bible is uncompromising in its remedy for groundless fears: 'Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus' (Philippians 4.6-7). Clearly there is a godly concern - Paul was concerned for the churches - and a reasonable concern - we are called to provide for our families - but all concerns need not for the Christian become neuroses, 'anxiety'. Don't worry...In other words, the Christian has the privilege of turning worry into prayer. All kinds of prayer, 'prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests', prayer of whatever kind, prayer to God is the remedy for worry. What Paul seems to be saying is this. Worry has a way of inflicting itself on the mind so that like a cracked record (you can guess my age by that analogy!) it becomes near impossible to break the pattern, to get out of the groove of self-defeating thought. We are not to think like this as Christians: 'do not be anxious'. It is uncompromising, this advice of the Bible's. But how are we not to be anxious? By turning the anxiety into prayer. 'Father, this worries me'; even such a simple prayer turns the focus to our Heavenly Father and thus leads us out of the trap of repetitive worry. ... be prayerfulHow pastoral is Paul! The battle is in the mind, the thought life, the pattern of inner psychology. And he does not just tell us not to think worrisome things, he tells us how to stop. 'OK, so you're thinking like this; how about, instead of just thinking about it, turning those thoughts into prayers, of any kind, even thanksgiving for what you have to thank God for - and there's a lot of that - and, guess what, peace will come as a result'. What should the Christian do in uncertain times? Apart from anything else, he or she should pray. Josh Moody
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