Peace Like a Frog

I NEVER IMAGINED using a frog as an illustration for peace . . .

. . . until one day when I was squeezing between two large plants in my backyard to pull out some potato vines and spied a small frog clinging to one of the elephant ears I had just brushed past. Although, I towered above this little 2-inch critter and made quite a commotion with all my activity, he didn’t budge. He showed no fear. He was the picture of peace.

For the next hour, I continued pushing past him, pulling on vines, dragging them back through the bushes to deposit them in the trash can, then back again through the opening to haul out more. I made quite a disturbance. But still the frog seemed unfazed. He didn’t move.

I was frankly surprised that he didn’t jump down and hop off to a calmer location where the plants were not being jostled and shaken. But in spite of any potential danger he might have perceived, he sat peaceful and seemingly unflustered on the side of the elephant ear plant.

As I wondered about why the frog showed no sign of fear, it made me start thinking about us and how we can have peace in the middle of chaos. When we are surrounded by turbulence, it’s hard not to become fearful—fearing we might get entangled in what is going on—fearing the danger it might bring into our lives.

Fear

So what do we do with fear? How can we have peace like a . . . frog?

Jesus’ disciple John says something that is quite curious about fear. He says in 1 John 4:18, “Perfect love casts out fear.” I used to wonder what this means. Certainly, he’s not talking about human love. Many of us learn the hard way that human love is not perfect, and if we depend on it too much, instead of casting out fear, it can actually cause fear.

As we look more closely, however, it becomes clear that John is talking about the “perfect” love of God. For only when we lean in on God’s “perfect love,” can we put away our fear.

So how now does this relate to the frog? Why didn’t the frog act fearful? Does a mere frog experience the love of God? In Matthew 6:26, Jesus tells us how God takes care of the birds and the flowers and the rest of his creation, imploring us to see that since we have more value than they, we should not worry or be fearful. So perhaps, through God’s provision of a suit of camouflage that allows the frog to be hidden in the undercover of his surroundings, this little creature may, in a way, experience the love of God. Maybe a built-in instinct and confidence in God’s unique provision for him “casts out his fear.” The frog is quiet and peaceful in the midst of all the mayhem going on around him for he knows that when he is still, he’s invisible to predators. He’s camouflaged. He’s hidden.

And therein is the connection. When we go to God in the midst of our fear, we also have a hiding place.

Our Hiding Place

Psalm 91:4 tells us, “He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart.“

In Psalms 57:1, David cries out to God, “Have mercy on me, for in you I take refuge. I will take refuge in the shadow of your wings until the disaster has passed.”

And in Psalm 32:7, David says, “You are my hiding place; you will protect me from trouble and surround me with songs of deliverance.”

So, yes, we have a camouflage too. God shields us from danger “in the shelter of [his] wings.” (Psalm 61:4) He is our hiding place.

We too can have peace like a frog.

When you feel fear stalking you, when it creeps up on you and is about to pull you under or send you off in a rage of anger, remember you have a hiding place in God. God’s protective camouflage will hide you from the enemy’s snares. And under the shadow of his wings you can find protection.

“Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High
will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.
I will say of the LORD, “He is my refuge and my fortress,
my God, in whom I trust.”
Surely he will save you
from the fowler’s snare
and from the deadly pestilence.

He will cover you with his feathers,
and under his wings you will find refuge;
his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart.
You will not fear the terror of night,
nor the arrow that flies by day,
nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness,
nor the plague that destroys at midday.”
Psalm 91:1-6

You are my hiding place – Listen to this song and let God fill your heart with songs of deliverance.

If fearful emotions are keeping you off balance because of a crisis in your marriage, my book, Broken Heart on Hold, is available to walk with you through the chaos. Many people have found the hope of God in its pages.