Malcolm Potts July 24th 2016 ~ Love or Fear

Well, this is a really musy musing.  Must be because Cheryl and I go on holidays next weekend.Firstly, welcome to our baptism visitors today.I visited a friend’s house yesterday. He has made some decisions that have threatened his marriage.  I feel sad.  I look around his garage and driveway and count three new BMW cars and wonder. . .I'm at a well known Cottesloe beachfront cafe.  I'm meeting Jo.  Jo is our local mayor and a lovely genuine person.  We meet for no particular reason which I often think is the best reason to meet.  She is running late, so I count the BMW cars out the front.  There are eleven and one Porsche.  I look around the cafe at the well-preserved people who are in the position, like me, to be in a cafe at 10:30am on a Thursday and I wonder. . .I was in the same cafe earlier in the week.  James, Liz and I met with Amy, the new chaplain at the North Cottesloe Primary School.  The waitress spilled some milk and was apologetic.  We were understanding and helpful and kind.  She said, not many people were like that.  And I wonder. . .All this wondering got me thinking about love.I was in my bedroom doing something as Cheryl headed off for a morning walk with one of you.  They bumped into other early birds exiting the church and there was a happy gabble of greetings and acknowledgement.  It sounded really warm and friendly.  Welcoming and nice.  I later learned that these women hadn't known one another before the women's retreat last weekend.  Their time together had ignited a flame of warmth one for the other.And I got to thinking about love. . .I got to thinking about people's motivations.  It seems that they are driven by either fear or love.  When I fear scarcity, disapproval, weakness, isolation, ignorance or anything else, I do things that seek to shore up my fears.  I can only act out of love when I know I am loved.  Everyone desperately wants the security of pure love.  When I am sure that I am loved, I step out boldly.  When I am afraid, I bite and devour and accumulate and possess, in an attempt to save myself.I thought about love because my Monday men's group had a discussion about complacency (Amos 9).  People in Jerusalem had everything and they confused what they had with God's blessing.  Their power and position and luxury and ease was a sign that their world view was correct.  God let them know through Amos that they were far from being right.We then read David's beautiful 86th Psalm.  He says there that he finds himself in the God who abounds in love to all who call to Him, to all who put their trust in Him.Baptism symbolises calling on God, even burying ourselves in God.  There is a lot that is not lovely, but God is there for those who call on Him in their circumstance, confident of His love and authority.  I can only say that because I have put Him to the test and experienced it.Fear or love.  What's it to be?Blessings,Malcolm