2Kings 18-19 tells the story of Hezekiah’s stand-off with Rabshakeh, field commander of Assyria’s army. Three important contextual observations lead us to a spiritual lesson:

the crisis was preceded by Hezekiah’s idol bashing reforms
Rabshakeh’s psychological warfare referenced that reform and used it as a means of intimidation
Hezekiah saw the crisis as [...]

The Friesen family went camping this week. I’d like to conjure an image of “Man v. Wild” but alas, a little cabin must and mildew is as wild as it got. I can say with some satisfaction that we did complete the Nebraska camper triathlon — sunburn, mosquito bites and ticks!
We made a [...]

A while back — I suppose it’s been a few months now — the water dispenser in our refrigerator stopped working. I don’t know what the problem was. The appliance isn’t even a year old. But it really wasn’t urgent enough to squeeze out anything on my “to do” list. I [...]

Joy is not a requirement of Christian discipleship, it is a consequence. It is not what we have to acquire in order to experience life in Christ; it is what comes to us when we are walking in the way of faith and obedience.
We come to God (and to the revelation of God’s ways) [...]

Master, they say that when I seem
To be in speech with you,
Since you make no replies, it’s all a dream
–One talker aping two.
They are half right, but not as they
Imagine; rather, I
Seek in myself the things I meant to say,
And lo! The wells are dry.
Then, seeing me empty, you forsake
The Listener’s role, and through
My [...]

Running Scared Chapter One
A World of Fear
Welch surveys our experience with fear from childhood to adulthood. His conclusion is that fear is natural—we have don’t have to learn it. Furthermore, fears don’t go away. With greater freedom and responsibility, fears multiply throughout life.
Welch offers a nice chuckle on the psychiatry of fear: [...]

“God Almighty has set before me two great objects, the suppression of the Slave Trade and the Reformation of Manners.” — William Wilberforce
Last night, our family watched the movie Amazing Grace. Good show. I felt the storytellers failed, however, to communicate the duration of the struggle and the power of Wilberforce’s endurance.
I [...]

Running Scared Chapter Two
Your Fear

I have a new philosophy. I only dread one day at a time. – Charlie Brown
“Rather than minimize your fears, find more of them. Expose them to the light of day because the more you find the more blessed you will be when you hear words of peace and [...]

Running Scared Chapter Three
Fear Speaks
“. . . fear is speaking, and we should listen” (p. 37). That’s the gist of chapter three. Fear’s most obvious message is that there is danger, but Welch hopes to help us listen carefully enough to get beyond the obvious.
After acknowledging that the world is full of real [...]

Running Scared Chapter Four
Anxiety and Worry Chime In

In chapter four, Welch’s goal is to expand the discussion beyond particular fears to the more general outlook of worry. At the end of the chapter he quotes Freud to demonstrate the significance of worry as a window to the soul:
“There is no question that the problem [...]