October 2, 2026
For some crazy reason, my granddaughters love to be scared. For several years, the same scenario has happened almost every night. The two youngest will go into our bathroom to brush their teeth and get ready for bed. They will ask Wayne or myself to "scare us when we come out." In essence, they want you to stand beside the closed bathroom door and scare them.
It is really silliness because there is not actually anywhere to hide, and they are always expecting it. Of course, they will totally act like they have been scared out of their minds, when in reality they were not. The act they put on never ceases to make everyone laugh. You can see the amusement in their eyes as they enjoy this pretend game.
I have thought about this scenario especially because it seems like fear, hopelessness, unrest, and uncertainty are rampant right now. As I was sitting in church this past Sunday, I had my Bible in my lap. It's my Bible I use all the time, but for some reason the verse on the front of my Bible just caught my attention. Sometimes scripture touches you differently depending on the situation you are in or what is happening in your life. This caught me in a totally different manner. The scripture is Romans 15:13: "May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him."
I immediately thought of our granddaughters and the scaring game. It just hit me that the reason they are not scared is because they trust Buddy and me. They know we would never harm or hurt them. There is hope in them wanting us to scare them, but also joy and fun in the game because of trust. I thought the same is true for us as adults.
I realize life is not a game, but it is an adventure. The only solution to conquer fear, have joy, and internal peace depends on who you trust. I can promise you that if you are trusting in your own abilities or someone other than God, you will be fearful, your joy will be temporary, and your peace will be short-lived. Only God can provide freedom from fear, complete joy, and unending peace in your life. Only God!
He is a God of hope. Worldly hope is a wish or a dream, but hope in God is an expectation — a future certainty. "Let all that I am wait quietly before God, for my hope is in Him" (Psalms 65:5).
Worldly joy is a feeling of great pleasure and happiness due to your circumstances. Godly joy is happiness in your heart that comes from knowing, experiencing, and trusting God, not your circumstances. "You make known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand" (Psalms 16:11).
Worldly peace is a state of harmony in the absence of hostility and violence. Peace from God comes from a relationship with Him. His peace is there, even when there is hostility or unrest surrounding us. "You (God) keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts you" (Isaiah 26:3).
The bottom line is God will provide and supply us with hope, joy, peace, and freedom from fear if we trust Him. That is exactly where I want to be residing - trusting God.
I will never be a fan of being scared; however, I will think about where and who my trust is in every single time I hear my granddaughters ask to be scared. Your peace, hope, and joy depend upon trusting God no matter where you go, what your circumstances in life might be, or even how scared you are. Who are you placing your trust in?
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Jill Johnson finds spiritual applications in her everyday experiences as a wife, mother, grandmother, and Georgian. Jill is retired from the Georgia Baptist Mission Board and is available to speak to your church's women's gatherings. Reach her at jjohnson@gabaptist.org.
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