Fears and Forts
“On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jewish leaders, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” After he said this, he showed them his hands and side. The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord.” (John 20:19-20)
When I was a kid, wet snowstorms were a gift from God. Give us six or more inches of the heavy, wet stuff, and we’d be outside building a snowman with a huge lower rolled-up body and diminishing features as you sculpted up from there. Snowstorms also meant at least two snow forts, separated by the imaginary Ohio River or a battle-scarred front yard. We packed the snow together to create firm foundations, solid and resembling medieval castles, and then we’d go higher and higher. Our purpose: to protect us from the snowballs that would be seeking unprotected targets. Getting hit by a snowball meant someone was losing, so we built our walls solid and imposing. It wasn’t uncommon for all the snow in the front yard to be gathered into the snow forts, leaving behind shivering blades of grass.
And then we would hide behind the wall, unwilling to stick our heads up and take a look. Our fear about what was outside our fort was greater than our desire to look beyond our wall. And yet, if we didn’t risk looking, we’d never know what was actually happening. Even worse, if neither snow fort person was willing to risk, we’d sit behind our walls, protected from the outside but not fulfilling our purpose.
That was a playful time for us. A more serious experience from the Bible comes with Jesus’s disciples after he has been crucified. They gather together in a room, some say the Upper Room, and lock the door. They’re afraid of what could be outside. They fear that those who were behind the crucifixion of Jesus are hunting for them. We’ll never know how long they would have been willing to stay locked up behind those walls since Jesus came and stood with them. If He had not come, the story would have been written in a depressing sort of way. Fear would have won, and faith would have been trivialized.
But he did come, and come into their midst! His presence resulted in the disciples risking their lives, laughing in the face of danger, and engaging with the culture of the times. Faith melts the walls away and guides us into areas that faith-less people fear. It allows us to enter into conversations with those who we have been told are different than us, not hide behind the walls of our close-mindedness.
How often does it seem that followers of Jesus are looking for victory instead of dialogue? Victory means I’ve hidden behind my wall until the exact moment my perceived enemy becomes vulnerable. It’s the direct punch that causes me to feel superior.
The thing is, being a follower of Jesus means He has already claimed the ultimate victory. Being a follower doesn’t mean I need to throw another punch. Being a follower simply means I’m to be faithful. Being faithful means my fears can be cast upon Him, and I no longer need to hide.
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