We Can Take Evil Seriously Without Living in Fear
Key Idea
Christians should understand that evil is real, but we do not need to live in fear of it. When we are afraid, we can turn our attention toward God and trust Him.
Key Scripture
“What time I am afraid, I will trust in thee.”
Psalm 56:3
Is It Wrong to Feel Afraid?
Have you ever been frightened?
Maybe you heard a strange noise at night.
Maybe you had a bad dream.
Maybe another child told you a frightening story.
Perhaps you saw something scary in a movie, television program, video, or game.
Sometimes our first reaction to something frightening is fear.
Does feeling afraid mean that you aren’t trusting God?
No.
Look carefully at what David said:
“What time I am afraid, I will trust in thee.”
Psalm 56:3
David didn’t say that he never felt afraid.
He said that when he was afraid, he would trust God.
That teaches us something very important:
Courage does not mean that you never feel afraid. Courage can mean choosing to trust God when you are afraid.
Evil Is Real, but We Don’t Need to Be Fascinated by It
In our earlier lessons, we learned that the Bible teaches that spiritual evil is real.
We shouldn’t pretend that evil doesn’t exist.
But there is another mistake we can make.
We can become fascinated with it.
Someone might want to know everything possible about demons, frightening supernatural stories, magic, darkness, or other evil things.
Soon, instead of thinking about God, that person spends more and more time thinking about darkness.
That’s not the purpose of learning spiritual discernment.
We learn about evil so that we can recognize what is wrong and turn toward what is right.
We don’t study darkness because darkness is exciting.
We learn God’s truth so that we can recognize what does not agree with it.
Where Should Our Attention Be?
Imagine that you are walking outside on a dark night with your parent.
Your parent is carrying a bright flashlight.
Which would help you more?
Would you spend the whole walk staring into the darkest places you could find?
Or would you stay close to your parent and walk where the light allows you to see?
Spiritually, we should do something similar.
We don’t need to keep searching through the darkness.
We keep our attention upon God and His truth.
The purpose of spiritual discernment isn’t to make us experts on everything evil.
It is to help us become children who recognize and follow what is good and true.
Remember Who Is Greater
The Bible gives Christians another wonderful reminder:
“Greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world.”
1 John 4:4
We don’t need to make evil seem stronger than it is.
We shouldn’t talk as though God and Satan are two equal powers fighting each other and we’re waiting to discover who will win.
Our confidence belongs in God.
When something frightening makes evil seem enormous, stop and remember:
God is greater.
Be Careful What You Feed Your Mind
Imagine having two plants.
Every day you water one plant, but you hardly ever water the other.
Which plant is likely to occupy more of your attention as it grows?
Something similar can happen with our thoughts.
If we continually fill our minds with frightening stories and images, those things may begin occupying more and more of our thoughts.
That’s one reason discernment about entertainment matters.
Ask yourself:
- Why do I want to watch this?
- Why do I want to read this?
- Is this helping me think about what is good?
- Is this making evil seem exciting or attractive?
- Is this making me afraid?
- Is this making me want more and more frightening material?
- What is this teaching me about spiritual things?
Remember what we’ve been practicing:
STOP
Don’t let curiosity, excitement, or fear make the decision for you.
THINK
What is this putting into my mind?
COMPARE
Does its message agree with God’s Word?
And when you’re uncertain, talk to your parents or another trusted Christian adult.
What Should I Do When Something Frightens Me?
Let’s add something to what we’ve already learned.
STOP
Take a moment instead of allowing your imagination to keep making the frightening thought bigger.
REMEMBER
Remember what God has said.
“What time I am afraid, I will trust in thee.”
Psalm 56:3
PRAY
Tell God what frightened you.
You don’t have to use special words.
You might simply pray:
“God, that frightened me. Please help me trust You and help me think about what is true.”
TALK
Tell your parent or another trusted adult what frightened you.
There is no shame in asking for help.
TURN YOUR ATTENTION
Don’t keep returning to the frightening thing unnecessarily.
Turn your attention toward God, Scripture, prayer, and things that are good.
Let’s Practice
Suppose some children begin talking about a frightening supernatural story.
They tell you:
“You have to watch it! You’re scared if you won’t watch it.”
What should you do?
First, you don’t have to prove that you’re brave.
Doing something because somebody dares you isn’t courage.
Use discernment.
STOP: Don’t allow peer pressure to make the decision.
THINK: Why do I want to see this? Am I curious? Am I trying to prove something? Is this something I should be putting into my mind?
COMPARE: What principles has God’s Word taught me?
Then talk with your parents if you aren’t sure.
Choosing not to watch something doesn’t necessarily mean you’re afraid of it.
Sometimes walking away is simply a wise decision.
What If I Already Saw Something Frightening?
Maybe you’ve already seen something that you wish you hadn’t.
Perhaps an image keeps coming back into your thoughts.
Don’t be embarrassed to tell someone.
You can tell your parent:
“I saw something that scared me, and I’m having trouble getting it out of my mind.”
You can pray about it together.
You can read Scripture together.
And you can remind yourself of what you know is true.
Don’t deliberately return to the frightening material because you’re curious about it.
Instead, turn your attention toward something good.
Fear and Discernment Are Different
It’s important to understand the difference.
Fear says:
“Something is frightening, so I must run from it because I’m terrified.”
Discernment says:
“I understand what this is, and I am choosing wisely based upon God’s truth.”
Those aren’t the same thing.
A Christian doesn’t need to become frightened by everything that mentions evil.
But neither should a Christian decide:
“I’m not afraid of it, so it must be okay for me.”
Being unafraid doesn’t automatically make something good.
That’s why we need discernment.
The question isn’t simply:
“Am I scared of this?”
The better question is:
“Does this agree with God’s truth, and is this something I should allow into my mind and heart?”
Our Goal Isn’t Fear
Think about everything we’ve learned so far.
We aren’t studying spiritual discernment so that we can become frightened of the world around us.
We aren’t studying spiritual warfare so that we can spend our time thinking about demons.
We aren’t learning about the armor of God so that we can imagine ourselves as supernatural superheroes.
We’re learning these things so that we can:
Know God’s truth.
Recognize what is wrong.
Choose what is right.
Trust God.
Stand firm.
And when we do feel afraid, we can say with David:
“What time I am afraid, I will trust in thee.”
Psalm 56:3
Remember
Feeling afraid sometimes doesn’t mean that you have failed.
When fear comes, you have a choice about where you will turn.
You can continue feeding the fear.
You can become fascinated with what frightened you.
Or you can turn toward God.
Today’s Truth
I don’t have to pretend that evil isn’t real, and I don’t have to be frightened or fascinated by it. When I am afraid, I can turn toward God and trust Him.
Talk About It
- Does trusting God mean that you will never feel afraid?
- What did David say he would do when he was afraid?
- What is the difference between taking evil seriously and becoming fascinated with it?
- Why don’t Christians need to constantly study frightening things?
- What can you do when something you see or hear frightens you?
- Does refusing to watch something mean that you’re scared of it?
- Why isn’t“I’m not afraid of it” enough to decide whether something is good for you?
- What questions can you ask when deciding whether to watch, read, or play something?
- Who can you talk to when something frightens or confuses you?
Activity: Turn From Fear to Trust
Fold a piece of paper in half.
On the left write:
WHEN I AM AFRAID…
Write or draw several things that sometimes make children feel afraid.
On the right write:
I CAN…
Then add:
- Remember what God says
- Pray
- Talk to a trusted adult
- Think about what is true
- Turn my attention toward God
- Trust Him
Across the bottom write:
“What time I am afraid, I will trust in thee.”
Psalm 56:3
Prayer
Dear God, thank You that I can trust You when I am afraid. Help me take evil seriously without becoming frightened or fascinated by it. When something scares me, help me remember Your truth, pray, and talk to someone I trust. Give me wisdom about the things I watch, read, hear, and play. Help me keep my attention on You and remember that You are greater. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Parent or Teacher Note
I think the distinction between fear, fascination, and discernment is the heart of this lesson.
We don’t want children to come away believing either extreme:
“Spiritual evil is so terrifying that I should be frightened of it.”
or
“If I’m not frightened by something, then it must be harmless.”
Neither response is discernment.
Instead:
Recognize → Compare → Choose → Trust God.
That reinforces the progression:
Lesson 1: Recognize truth.
Lesson 2: Spiritual warfare isn’t a fantasy battle.
Lesson 3: God is our refuge and strength.
Lesson 4: God equips us to stand.
Lesson 5: Should Christian Be Frightened of Evil?
That prepares perfectly for Lesson 6: How Do We Evaluate Entertainment? The children now have enough foundation to consider movies, games, books, music, and other media without the lesson becoming merely a list of forbidden things.
Leave a Reply