The Illusion of Safety.

August 5, 2010

Proverbs 1:33, “But whoso hearkeneth unto me shall dwell safely, and shall be quiet from fear of evil.”

As I discussed previously I had been experiencing an overwhelming peace of mind and security knowing that Christ had a plan for my life and He was watching over me.  I have begun to notice local firearm possession.  Though it is extremely difficult to legal own guns in Brasil the black market makes the enjoying ownership of a weapon easier than ever.  I have had them flashed at me even, but I quickly walk away and have felt never felt legitimately fearful to date.  I always just continue walking briskly away.  Also I had just learned that only a year prier to my arrival in Gamboa it would not have been uncommon for a foreigner to be shot and robbed if it were known he was carrying a camera!

“Dwell safely” I kept pondering this verse and the more I pondered the deeper the realization that no evil can befall us as long as we are following Him.  Which then raised a new question, “What is safety”? Job was safe because God was protecting him, yet he still suffered many things.

Everyone has the desire to explore new horizons, yet over every mountain we see another, taller, more compelling peak.  South America is my mountain and from the peaks of Brasil I can somehow see clearly.  God is revealing His beauty in nature and through people, the children we spend time with and the adults we encourage are a true inspiration.  Men consumed with anger and alcoholism, churches controlled by Catholicism, women swallowed up by jealousy and husbands living in infidelity, drugs enslaving communities.  Yes, Satan has a hold in Rio, but we “dwell safely”.

I began to realize that safety is just an illusion.  A blanket that many of us need to live out our lives.  I realize however, that the imaginary blanket of safety is much like the nuclear drills conducted in public schools during the cold war.  Children would practice getting under their desks in the event of a nuclear attack.  Anyone would have known that sitting under ones desk would no more prevent injury from a nuclear attack than an umbrella would shield against an erupting volcano!  Safety is a state of being, we are only safe when God is protecting us, regardless of the neighborhood we select, the schools we attend, the job where we work, or the activities we engage in.  In Rio despite a seemingly dangerous environment I was safe, and for the time I was at home.  God was protecting me and no one could stand against us.