Hope with Grace – Part Fifteen
I see many young people, thoughtfully and determinedly engaging with the significant issues of this century with great enthusiasm and growing wisdom. There is great hope in our young people; yet there are many forces which seek to encourage them to be more and more fearful.
I see how easily they can be weighed down by irrational fear and negativity.
Frank Furedi is a Hungarian-Canadian academic and emeritus professor of sociology at the University of Kent. He is well known for his work on the sociology of fear:
“For some time now, young people have been socialised into the assumptions of the culture of fear from an early age onwards. Children were once encouraged to adopt values like courage, to believe that problems and hazards could be dealt with by being courageous. Now, people are told that they should simply avoid trouble and risk altogether, rather than confront the difficulties they face. Old virtues like courage no longer have any real purchase in society. Courage is either derided as old-fashioned or it is redefined to the point of meaninglessness.
“I have come to the conclusion that society has unwittingly become estranged from the values – such as courage, judgment, reasoning, responsibility – that are necessary for the management of fear.”
Young people are socialised to feel fragile and overawed by uncertainty” [1]
Fear has become an ever-expanding part of life in the twenty-first century. We live in terror of disease, abuse, stranger danger, environmental devastation and terrorist onslaught. We are bombarded with reports of new concerns for our safety and that of our children, and urged to take greater precautions and seek more protection.
Fear does enter our lives. David says: “WHEN I am afraid, I put my trust in You.”[2] He also says: “I sought the LORD and He answered me and delivered me from all my fears.”[3] That deliverance from fear is not a once-off occurrence. Rather it is encouragement with regard to what to do when fears come – and they will come. Seek God who brings hope through grace.
Fear without hope leads to hopelessness; a debilitating despair.
The grace of God generates compassion. Courage arises from hope; hope arises from grace; grace provides us with peace and security. Not a passive peace, but a foundation from which to engage with all of the issues that surround us – and to engage with them redemptively, graciously and with hope.
Blessings,
Brian
[1] Furedi F “Culture of Fear Revisited” Continuum; 2nd edition (December 26, 2006)
[2] Psalm 56:3
[3] Psalm 34:4