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fear

I’m afraid of frogs

Posted on March 12, 2011 by jon in fear | Leave a comment

Hi, my name is Jon, and I’m a ranidaphobe. That’s right. I’m afraid of frogs.

This stems from one particular incident from my childhood. My family and I were swimming at my grandparents’ pool (and by “swimming,” I mean “standing around in the shallow end”). I got out of the pool for some reason, and while I was walking along the side, I slipped, and fell into the deep end. It was at this moment that my dad decided he’d jump in to rescue me.

I’m not sure how long I was under, but I remember the customary “pool water vomit” that ensued after I was pulled up. I was lying on my back on the cement. Just then, I turned my head for another heave, and there it was. About a foot from my face. The nastiest, ugliest, slimiest frog I’d ever seen. I screamed like a little girl.

It seems as though frogs just won’t leave me alone, either. When Nikki and I went to the Outer Banks of NC after we got married, our house had a hot tub. I relaxed for an hour or so the first night in the hot tub, then got out, put the cover on, and went in to bed. The next afternoon, I went back out and opened the tub again, finding around 15 frogs all swimming around in there. This told me that they had been in there the whole time I’d been in the night before. I got goose bumps just typing that just now.

I remember when we lived in our first apartment and I had gone out to grill dinner, and upon opening the grill, there was one in there. Nikki had to get it out before I would cook.

About 5 years or so ago, I hit a frog with my weed-eater. It did this crazy flip thing and landed on all fours, staring daggers at me, like it had a vendetta against me. I went to go get my wife, came back, and it was gone. I’m convinced that the frog is still in my yard somewhere, plotting my demise.

As a side note, this event also spawned a fear of water, which I held onto for most of my life, until my decision to learn to swim last year. I’m not sure how to overcome this one, though. When putting a picture with this post, even, I couldn’t use one of a real frog. I opted instead, for the less-scary (but still a bit scary), Kermit.

A few more thoughts on worry

Posted on January 6, 2011 by jon in fear, life, talks | 1 Comment

As most of you probably know, this past Sunday I preached a message on worry, based on Matthew 6:25-34 (the audio from that message can be found here). This week, I’ve been thinking more and more about this topic. I’ve heard lots of people comment about this message, and I’ve heard lots of people tell me, “I’m worried about [insert worry here].” I ended the message with a simple, yet powerful idea: “Do everything you can do, and trust God to do what only he can do.” I wish I’d had more time to talk about this specifically on Sunday, but luckily, I have a blog.

This is a two-part solution, each with its own distinct characteristics. Let’s start with part one:

Do everything you can do…

What does that mean? Should I push myself to the absolute limit? In my mind, this means to exhaust every reasonable possibility to remedy a situation. Sometimes, worry and stress tend to pile up on top of us and even simple decisions are extremely difficult to make. In more practical terms, writing things down has always helped me. If I ever feel overloaded with worry or stress, I simply make a list of everything I have going on, and then make a column of possible solutions. If you go through all of these solutions to the best of your ability, and the situation remains bothersome or stressful, you’ve done everything you can do. That’s very important to remember. You’re only human. God, however, is divine. This brings us to part two:

Trust God to do what only he can do.

It’s one thing to say, “I trust God,” but it’s quite another thing to put that trust (or – scary word here – “faith”) into practice. Pray for wisdom and clarity (two things we all need during times of stress) and listen for God’s response. There’s a two-part task in itself. We’re all good at praying, but many of us aren’t that good at listening. Trust me – God answers prayer. Many times we don’t get the answer we want, but the answer is still there. So what can God do? God can give you the wisdom, the clarity, and the courage to do what needs to be done. God can work a miraculous movement in your life. God can literally change your situation with zero effort. Do you believe that? Listen to David:

I cry to you, LORD; I say, “You are my refuge, my portion in the land of the living.” Listen to my cry, for I am in desperate need; rescue me from those who pursue me, for they are too strong for me. Set me free from my prison, that I may praise your name. Then the righteous will gather about me because of your goodness to me. – Psalm 142:5-7

When we humbly cry out in desperation for help from God, God hears our cry. We have to remember that God works all things together for good (check out Romans 8:28), and he knows the plans he has for each of us. God’s plan for your life is good – never forget that. In times of worry, don’t let your uncertainty trump your God. The God who raised Jesus from the dead will raise you out of the depths of your worry, and lead you to a bright future.

“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” – Jeremiah 29:11

So – whether your worry is about your health, your finances, your career, your education, your family, or anything else “under the sun,” your Heavenly Father will provide, according to his plan, which is good. Do everything you can do, and put your faith in God for the rest.

Testing the Waters

Posted on August 11, 2010 by jon in fear, random thoughts | 5 Comments

Last night, I did something I thought I’d never do: I took my first swimming lesson. That’s right – I’m 29 years old, and I don’t know how to swim. This has provided for years of awkward pool-going and at the advice of a friend, I finally decided to try to learn. After all, I have three kids, and if any of them ever needed me to jump in and save them from any watery situation, I’d probably be the one that ended up needing to be saved. Plus, it’s just lame to me that I can’t swim.

The class I’m in has only 4 students. One didn’t show up last night. So, it was me, the instructor, and a mid-30s married couple. Now, you should understand that over the years I’ve developed a bit of a phobia. Not a fear of water specifically, but the fear of being completely submerged in water. The longer I put off swimming lessons, the greater this fear became. That being said, last night at dinner I was extremely nervous. I couldn’t even eat all of my food. Once I got to the pool, and the instructor said it was time to begin, my heart was beating fiercely.

We started with simple stuff, like bobbing up and down in the water. I knew, however, that it would only be a matter of time before I was asked to perform the unavoidable “head dunk.” When the time came, I said a silent prayer, took several deep breaths, and took the plunge. It was almost like it was slow-motion. I knew that I was completely under the water because I could feel it on the top of my head. I took a brief mental snapshot of what this felt like, and emerged from the water. As soon as I took a breath, an amazing, earth-shattering, life-altering realization came to the forefront of my mind: “This isn’t so bad.”

The rest of the night found me repeatedly trying to push the limits of my phobia. It was exhilarating, challenging, and extremely satisfying. After nearly three decades, I was not just learning how to swim, but doing so comfortably.

I’ve still got three lessons left. By no means do I expect to be the next Michael Phelps, and I’m sure you won’t catch me lifeguarding any time soon, but I’ve conquered a fear that had such a grip on me that I thought overcoming it was a futile effort.

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