Running Scared: Fear, Worry, and the God of Rest

Like all of Ed Welch's books, Running Scared is a helpful book for ordinary people who struggle with ordinary sins. Scripture-laden and down-to-earth, this expose on fear, worry, and anxiety addresses our souls with the living and active word of the Living God. Welch writes in an easy, conversational style, weaving Scripture, personal stories, and thoughtful heart-oriented application into the tapestry of his book. The thirty chapters are short enough to read several in one sitting. The last two thirds of the book helpfully divides into four sections addressing three categories of fear: (1) money and possessions; (2) people and their judgments; (3) death, pain and punishment; then finally, peace with God. This last section may be my favorite, as Welch helpfully unfolds several biblical themes (such as covenant, shalom, and peacemaking) with a view to helping us deal with our fears. Running Scared will be helpful for several groups of people: (1) those with anxiety disorders or pathological fears; (2) people struggling with everyday, garden-variety worry; (3) psychologistis, pastors, and both professional and lay counselors who are trying to help people work through their fears. I found the book helpful in both personal and pastoral ways and highly recommend it to others.

I haven't finished reading all this book, but what I have read so far is pretty good. The author does not treat fear and anxiety with trivial phrases but go into more depth about what is really going on and how our fears really show us where our treasure is. I am learning from this.

A very helpful book for those of us with fears, which includes most all of us. The first few chapters aren't very helpful but then he gets to the root of our fears and I found the middle section very helpful in understanding what our fears really are - a mistrust in God and His goodness.

Edward T. Welch, begins by explaining that "...fears come with the package of being human," and that for most of us "fear...becomes the background noise of everyday life." Possibly that is why "Do not be afraid" is the most frequent command in the Bible - mentioned over 300 times! Welch goes on to discuss how our fears, worries and anxieties speak about our desires, about what we love, and what or who we trust the most; that "they are more about us than about the things outside us. They reveal what is valuable to us, and what is valuable to us in turn reveals our kingdom allegiances." Are we focused on the kingdom of this world or on the kingdom of God? He continues, "All we can see with the naked eye is our own particular frets and fears, but there is something much bigger taking place. Worries are a way that we doubt the King's presence and power. Our doubts could come from our own stubborn commitment to the myth of personal autonomy, or they may come from satanic accusations that question God's generosity and our unworthiness. Either way, anxiety and worry are spiritual wake-up calls that must be handled by spiritual means." (Pg.118) This book does not provide 10 easy microwave steps to overcoming our fears. Nor does it sidestep the obvious fact that we as Christians can and do suffer in this life. However, Dr. Welch very aptly breaks down the underlying motives and causes of fear and worry; and using Scripture, precept upon precept, turns our eyes toward God and his purposes for us in the Kingdom of His Son. Or in his words, "Track your fears with the light of Scripture and you are directed to God."

I received a Kindle version of this book in a free promotional through one of several websites I subscribe to. There was no obligation to provide a positive (or otherwise) review. At first, I didn't think I was going to like this book. The author calls the thirty chapters "meditations," and, for the first few chapters, I had decided that he didn't really know what that word means. They didn't seem "meditative" at all, to me. But, if I had been paying closer attention, I would have noticed that part one is called "Initial Observations." That's a good clue. The first four chapters are a sort of "introduction to fear," if you will. Beginning with part two, "God Speaks," Edward takes the veritable plethora of times that God tells us, "Do not be afraid," and, coupled with God's provision of manna to the Israelites in the wilderness, launches us into a wonderful treatise on how to battle fear and anxiety in our lives. He covers are propensity to worry (even to worry about worrying), our leaning toward grasping at money and possessions, how we worry about what others think about us, and our fears of death, pain, and punishment (judgment from God). Finally, he tells us how God speaks peace into our lives. Perhaps these turned out to be meditations, after all. There are a lot of good points in this book, and I think it well worthy of reading again. We would do well to remember that there are over three hundred occurrences of God telling someone, "Do not be afraid," in the Bible..

Some people know that they have fear. Others are afraid to admit it. In this primer on fear, worry, and the God of rest Ed Welch invites us on a biblical journey to face our fears. He begins with initial observations on fear. In order to let God speak to our fear we have to discover exactly how we are afraid, as well as admit that our fear says more about our belief in God than about the fear itself. In the second section of the book (which is comprises 4/5 of the book) Welch "let's God speak" to our fear. He begins by laying a biblical foundation from the story of the Israelites and Manna. His point is simple--God gives us enough grace for each day, but only enough for each day. You will get more grace for tomorrow but only until tomorrow. After laying a solid foundation Welch then invites us to hear what God has to say about some of the big "fears" we face. He addresses money and possession; people and their judgments; death, pain, and punishment. He closes out the book by letting God speak peace to us. Also, after every chapter Welch offers a personal response to what has been discussed.

do not generally consider myself a worrier. I am more the easy-going type--the kind who is generally carefree and and does not succumb to fear. Or so I like to think. But even then I have to admit that I can be fearful--I can give in to the temptation to worry. Even if I worry about the things I consider "big," I prove to myself that I am still a worrier at heart. And to tell the truth, I don't know of anyone who doesn't worry about something at sometime. We all tend to feel fear at one time or another; we all tend to be afraid of life, of what it brings, or of what we think it might bring in the future. Running Scared is a book for fearful people, which is to say that it is a book for everybody. It is notable not only for its subject matter, but for its author--Edward Welch who has written, among other highly regarded titles When People Are Big and God Is Small. The book is divided into thirty chapters and Welch encourages the reader to tackle one chapter per day and to not return to the next until he has taken the time to discuss each one with another person. The chapters fall into two uneven parts, one with four and the other with twenty six chapters. Welch begins with some initial observations, perhaps the most important of which is in the third chapter. It is here that he reveals that "fear speaks." This is to say that fear tells us about...us. It tells us about how we understand ourselves, about how we understand God and how we understand the world around. Fear is "a door to spiritual reality." "There is a close connection," Welch says, "between what we fear and what we think we need. ... Whatever you need is a mere stone's throw from what you fear." That statement is profound and well worth further consideration. It is little wonder that Welch suggests pausing often to ponder. Another point that I found worth of extra attention was this one: "Worriers live in the future." Worriers are constantly looking into the future and using their imaginations to construct their own version of what the future will look like--what it must look like based on their understanding of what has happened, what will happen, and how God works. "Here is where adult imaginations show their mettle. Imaginations are our ability to consider things that don't presently exist. Sometimes we call it vision. A visionary is one who looks ahead and envisions the trajectory of a church, business, or individual life. A talented visionary is one who can see future possibilities and persuade others of that future. Visionaries are rarely right (at least in the details), tend to be optimistic, and are always confident." What does this have to do with worry? "Worriers are visionaries minus the optimism." Ouch. Worriers construct worse case scenario futures for themselves and begin to believe that these futures must be theirs. In this way they take on the role of prophets, but only of false prophets. And we all know what the Bible prescribes for false prophets... Having shared his initial observations, Welch turns to the voice of God, providing a series of chapters in which "God speaks." God first speaks about some general principles related to fear and worry and then to more specific matters--money and possessions; people and their judgments; death, pain and punishment; and then peace. Each chapter turns to Scripture for its authority and each concludes with a point or two of a personal response of application or reflection. With surprise I admit that this is my first foray into the books of Edward Welch (though it certainly will not be my last). He has quite a unique writing style, one that made me think of Mark Buchanan with maybe a few shades of Max Lucado or Phillip Yancey (which in this case I mean to be a compliment). He writes conversationally, almost poetically, but also exegetically, drawing what he teaches primarily from the Bible. It is clear that He relies on Scripture as his authority and his source. For someone who does not consider himself much of a worrier, I was surprised to find that this book offered me a lot to think about; it offered me a challenge to see where (not if) I worry. And as it offered the biblical diagnosis, it offered also the biblical cure. It showed me that worry, though usually a hidden sin and perhaps even a sin that most often seems harmless, is a sin that impacts my life and serves to distance me from the God who says time and time again, "Do not be afraid. Peace be with you. The Lord give you peace." It showed me most clearly of all that the way I feel about fear and worry is a sure indication of what I believe about God. Running Scared is a book I highly recommend. I think you'll want to add it to your library as well.