Lent Day 14… Fear Is Not A Christian Habit Of Mind

Fear is not a Christian habit of mind. —Marilynne Robinson

Yesterday afternoon, we went to Imperial Courts in Watts with a team from the L.A. Dream Center. I was pretty excited to go there again—mostly because I absolutely loved the Netflix Original “Imperial Dreams,” about a young man who just got out of prison and is trying to rebuild his life while living in Imperial Courts. The film is gripping, heartbreaking, tragic, and beautiful.

I’ve been in Watts a number of times with the Dream Center. My favorite thing about these visits is just hanging out with the kids. Children are quick to embrace anyone. It’s easy to show up and simply be available—to listen and play and laugh. The truth is, the kids do all the work for you. You just have to show up.

When we arrived in the projects, we were pretty much immediately surrounded by kids. They gave hugs, asked for piggyback rides, and managed to capture 100% of our attention.

The Dream Center had a number of projects for us to do while we were there – setting up for the 3:00pm Kid’s Jam event, going around “Blitzing” – letting people know about the event, hanging out with kids during Kid’s Jam, etc.

But then they asked us to go around and just knock on doors… letting people know we’re from the Dream Center, asking how they’re doing, and asking if they would like prayer. OK, so this is my worst nightmare.

I’m an introvert. I stand on the edges of rooms while my wife walks around at parties meeting people. This knocking on doors thing is so not my jam.

I kept thinking about how I don’t ever answer my door when someone knocks. We don’t have one of those eye-hole thingys and I have no way of knowing who is out there. What if it’s a salesperson? Or worse yet, what if it’s a religious person with a pitch?

So I started out, walking slowly, fighting with myself in my own head. I knocked, while praying no one would be home. And I thanked the Lord when nobody answered the door. One door, two doors, three doors… no answer. Praise. The. Lord.

Then it happened. Someone answered the door. It was a young woman—in her early 20′s. I immediately asked if she had any kids (so I could tell her about the Kid’s Jam event). She said no. Uh….. um, now I’m flustered and stuck. All I can do is ask if she would like prayer for anything. So I do.

She says, “You want to pray?” I stammer… yyyy, yes.

At this point, one of the female leaders from the Dream Center joins me on the doorstep. We make introductions. And now it’s back to the whole prayer thing.

She repeats, “You want to pray?” I say yes.

She says, “Cool. I like prayer. Let’s pray.”

Oh. Yeah. Cool. I like prayer too. I smile. Then I ask if there’s anything specific that she needed prayer for. She smiles again and says “No, let’s just pray.”

Um. Wow. Yup. Ok.

And we hold hands, the three of us on a doorstep in Imperial Courts and I start praying…

God, thank you for Dawnchelle. I pray you would bless her and everyone in her family. Bless her with health and everything she needs. I pray her home would be filled with joy. And God, I ask that Dawnchelle would sense your presence with her every day, everywhere. Thank you for this chance to pray together. And thank you for your blessings. In Jesus name, amen.

All three of us are smiling, like something kind of special just happened. Maybe a little weird, but still… special. And it feels like God met us there… on the doorstep of Danchelle’s apartment in Watts.

I think Marilynne Robinson is on to something…

Fear is not a Christian habit of mind.

There is no room in love for fear. Perfect love banishes fear. Since fear is crippling, a fearful life is one not yet fully formed in love. —1 John 4.18