Perfect Love

Posted on September 1, 2008 12:00 AM MST by Tiffany Kinerson

“…Perfect love casts out fear….” I John 4:18

My son woke up for the third night in a row with tears in his eyes. “The house was split open and it was raining outside. All this water was coming in through the crack, and I didn’t know what to do. We were gonna die, Momma….”

I hugged him, of course. It’s the mom thing to do. But then I met his eyes with mine. “Joseph when I’m afraid, do you know what I do? I say a verse.” The tears kept coming and he hugged me tighter.

“O…kay.” Sniff.

“Perfect love casts out fear.”

He nodded, fear gripping his hands in a pre-school clincher of a hug.

“You’ve gotta say it, buddy. Perfect love casts out fear.”

“Perf—” He burst into tears again. “I can’t.”

I squeezed him and patted his head. “You can and you will. Perfect love casts out fear.”

He repeated me, unsure of the power, not quite grasping the sword he wielded against the spirits of fear that flitted about in the room with us.

“Say it again.”

“Perfect love casts out fear.” He released his grip of me.

I laid him back against his pillow. “Say it again.”

“Perfect love casts out fear.” Not a tear in his eye, not one grip of terror in his voice.

I pulled the covers up to his chin and kissed him on his nose. Stroked my finger down his cheek. “Say it again.”

He rolled to the wall. “No, I don’t feel like it.” And then he fell asleep.

Now I sit here, remembering this, a letter by my side telling my husband about his imminent lay-off at work, our phone unhampered by other offers to aid our survival. And God talks to me. “Say it again.” I want to roll over, suck my thumb and fall asleep in His peace, too. But not yet. So I guess I will repeat it again: Perfect Love casts out fear. And I will hold my Father in my own clincher of a hug before I burst into tears.

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