The disciples went and woke him, saying, “Master, Master, we’re going to drown!” -Luke 8:24a

As you read the rest of the story, you’ll see that Jesus was disappointed in the disciples’ lack of faith. Where is your faith? He asked them. They had been hanging around Him for a while by then, and it seems that He was hoping they would have built up strong enough faith to stay calm in harrowing circumstances and trust God to see them through. But, like we often do, the disciples panicked and let their fear get the best of them. 

However, they also let their fear drive them straight to Jesus. Even though we might fault them for assuming the worst, we can at least admire them for the direction they turned when their fears got the best of them. What if you turn your mindset and attention directly toward Jesus when you feel fear rising up? Just imagine what a difference that could make. Jesus responded with a challenge to the disciples, and He might respond with a convicting challenge to you, too. But that might be just what your faith needs to strengthen and grow. 

Immediately after this story, we read about the healing of a demon-possessed man in Luke 8:26-38. I’ll let you read this passage for details, but by the time all was said and done, Jesus had evicted a demon from a man who had long been tormented by it. This man went from being a naked wanderer to being clothed and able to return home. When the people in the nearby town and countryside heard what happened, they went to check things out, and they were shocked by what their eyes beheld. 

When they came to Jesus, they found the man from whom the demons had gone out, sitting at Jesus’ feet, dressed and in his right mind; and they were afraid. Those who had seen it told the people how the demon-possessed man had been cured. Then all the people of the region of the Gerasenes asked Jesus to leave them, because they were overcome with fear. So he got into the boat and left. -Luke 8:35-37

You didn’t skim past that too quickly, did you? Did you see how these people responded to fear? The man’s dramatic change of fortune left them shocked and amazed. The “normal” they had become accustomed to had been turned upside down. If I had to guess, I’d presume that their fear included bits of confusion, wonder, curiosity, shock and amazement. But bottom line, the Bible says they were afraid. However, instead of turning to Jesus like the disciples had in the previous passage, these folks turned away from Him. As in, they literally asked Him to leave. And so? He did. 

If that doesn’t raise your eyebrows, you may need to wake yourself up and read it one more time. Recap: the people were scared, they asked Jesus to leave, and so He did. Remember the verse that says if you draw near to God, He will draw near to you (James 4:8)? Well, this story in Luke shows somewhat of the opposite happening. If you pull yourself away from God, you’re doing just that—putting distance between yourself and Him. The opposite of nearness! He will always be ready and waiting for your return, but if you separate yourself from Him, there will be separation. This sounds obvious to state, but it feels like an important reminder. 

As you consider these two different responses to fear, you may be thinking of times in your life when you responded similarly. Was there a time when you went straight to Jesus in the face of a fearful circumstance? Was there a time when you actually turned away from Him and resorted to your own methods and “solutions?” How did this go for you? What can you learn from it? …about Jesus? …about yourself? 

Here’s one other question to consider as you think about responding to fear in the posture and mindset of a believer: What does faith over fear look like? If you were to make the shift to responding in faith instead of fear when scary or intimidating situations arise in life, what would need to change? Here are a few things that come to my mind as I think about responding to fear in faith: 

• It requires humility.
• It includes approaching Jesus with honesty about the questions or struggles I may be having.
• It involves acknowledging who Jesus is—sovereign over any situation that comes my way. 
• It means pursuing nearness instead of distancing myself from God and avoiding Him and/or His way of facing the circumstance.
• It is a choice.

Choosing to respond to scary situations in faith instead of in fear will most often require swimming upstream. To trust Jesus instead of your own devices might feel unnatural and even uncomfortable. Until you’ve done it many times, it will likely not be your instinctive response. So? Ask the Holy Spirit for help! Start praying today—in advance!—so that you’ll be ready when the time comes. Your prayers can be proactive in preparing you for what is to come. Then, when the next scary situation comes your way, remember these stories in Luke 8. Resolve to be more like the disciples and less like the crowd. Sure, it would have been awesome if the disciples had had the faith in that moment to just sit tight in the boat and trust Jesus to save them without needing to wake Him up in a frightened panic. However, they were imperfect. They responded like most humans probably would—in fear. But they let their fear drive them straight to Jesus. Will you do the same?