What if you’ve been afraid of the wrong things your whole life?

This week’s Gospel has Jesus telling his disciples — who would go on to die gruesome deaths for their faith — “Do not be afraid.” But he also tells them there is one thing worth fearing: the one who can throw both body and soul into Gehenna.

Chris reflects on this Gospel from a deeply personal place, sharing the story of little Margaret — a baby whose skull didn’t form fully in the womb, who lived only a few breaths, and whose brief life and faithful family changed her doctor’s entire approach to this kind of thing. From the vantage point of eternity, Chris asks: what are we actually protecting when we let fear run our lives?

In this reflection, Chris unpacks:

• Why Jesus tells us not to fear — and what he actually means by it
• The one fear that is good and why we’ve stopped talking about it
• How fear of hell can actually be a gift that keeps us on the right path
• Why most of our fears are centered around “the breath” and not the billion years that follow
• What it looks like to fear the right thing when it comes to sharing your faith

Whether your life is 90 years or a few breaths, from the perspective of eternity, it all goes by in a flash. The question is: what are you doing with it — and what are you afraid of?

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

1. Jesus tells us not to fear those who can harm our bodies, but to fear the one who can throw body and soul into Gehenna. What does it look like practically to “fear the right thing” in your daily life?
2. Chris describes most of our fears as being centered around “the breath” — protecting our comfort, reputation, or earthly life — rather than the eternity that follows. Where do you see that pattern in your own life?
3. Chris shares that fear of sin was sometimes what kept him on the right path when love wasn’t enough in a given moment of temptation. Have you ever experienced fear as a gift that moved you toward God? What happened?
4. The Gospel warns against denying Jesus before others out of fear of what they’ll think. Is there an area of your life — a relationship, a workplace, a situation — where you’ve been staying quiet when you should speak? What’s holding you back?
5. Little Margaret’s brief life and her family’s faithfulness moved even her doctor. How does the witness of people who face suffering with faith shape your own understanding of what life is for?