Disarming the Spirit of Fear
October 1, 2025
Fr. John Riccardo
Beloved: I remind you, to stir into flame the gift of God that you have through the imposition of my hands. For God did not give us a spirit of cowardice but rather of power and love and self-control. So do not be ashamed of your testimony to our Lord, nor of me, a prisoner for his sake; but bear your share of hardship for the gospel with the strength that comes from God.
Take as your norm the sound words that you heard from me, in the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. Guard this rich trust with the help of the Holy Spirit that dwells within us (2 Timothy 1:6-8, 13-14).
It’s always been rather striking to me how two men, close in age, came to radically different conclusions about life. Jean Paul Sartre concluded life is absurd. Karol Wojtyla was constantly exhorting people not to be afraid.
Sartre was born in 1905. His father died when he was two years old. After living through World War I as a young boy and teenager, Sartre was drafted into World War II. Taken prisoner by the Germans, he was released and ended up engaging with the French resistance. Wojtyla was born in 1920, and also lost a parent when young, as his mother died when he was eight. He also lived through the horrors of World War II, and the Nazi occupation of Poland. Unfortunately, when the War ended, he then lived through the oppression of the Soviet Union’s stranglehold on Poland.
And yet these men, with such similar experiences, saw life very differently. Sartre was an avowed atheist; Wojytla, a man of extraordinary faith in Jesus. Faith, contrary to how many understand it, is not blind. It’s a way of knowing, a way of seeing – enlightenment, in fact. The reality is that without faith we’re blind; we can’t see. We can’t see reality as it truly is. We can’t see there is a good God, who created everything; who has a plan; who has rescued His creation from the cosmic powers that had captured it way back in Eden; that in Jesus these cosmic powers have been defeated and that one day all will be made new. This is why Wojtyla, especially when he became Pope John Paul II, so frequently repeated to everyone: “Do not be afraid!”
This all comes to my mind this week as we linger with Paul’s exhortation to Timothy, his younger brother in the faith. “God did not give us a spirit of cowardice,” he writes. We could alternatively translate that as, “God did not give us a spirit of fear.” Fear is one of the primary tactics of the devil, the sole enemy of our race. He and the other fallen angels try to use fear to build what are often called strongholds inside our minds. Strongholds are mental or emotional prisons controlled by the demons, used as staging areas to wage war against God in our lives. They’re like fortresses that are built over time in our minds, often without our being aware of them.
What are we afraid of? Well, for most of us, what aren’t we afraid of?! Cancer. Growing old. Losing our health. Losing our reputation. Not having enough money to retire. The well-being of our children. Failure. Not being loved. Being rejected. Death. And so much more.
But we don’t have to succumb to these fears; we don’t have to let them control us. It’s natural to feel afraid at various times in our lives. The fact that the command, “Do not be afraid” is the most common command in the whole Bible tells me that it must be the thing that I need to hear the most! But though I have the feeling of fear, I do not have to let it control me. This is what John Paul II was constantly saying to the world. And this is what Paul is saying to us this week.
Perhaps a most concrete exercise we could do with the Word of God this week is to make time to ask the Lord in prayer to gently shine a light on what fear is strongest in your life and mine right now. Then, as that becomes clear, to bring it to Him. As we do so, we can ask the Holy Spirit to remind us that the Lord has defeated our enemy by His cross and resurrection, and that he has no power over us, and that we have a good Father who holds us and those we love in His hands. Perhaps we can conclude with something as simple, and powerful, as this: “In the name of Jesus, I renounce the spirit of fear – and all related spirits – and I bind them and cast them to the foot of the cross for Jesus to do with as He wishes.”
ACTS XXIX Prayer Intentions
October 2025
For Our Holy Father, Pope Leo XIV, that his faithful preaching and teaching may renew the human family and transform it into the family of God.
For the leaders from across the United States and Canada who will be joining us for a leadership immersive, that our time together may be a catalyst for renewal and transformation in the Church and in the world.
For our Board of Directors and our upcoming meeting, that our time together may be an opportunity to give thanks for all God has done in the mission and to again hear His voice as He leads us forward.
For our extended time in the Diocese of Wichita, that the Holy Spirit may lead, guide, and inform the mission there and bless the good work already unfolding in the diocese.
For the continued partnership between ACTS XXIX and Hallow, that the upcoming Hallow Challenge with Fr. John may bear abundant fruit in the lives of all who participate.
For Fr. John Riccardo, the ACTS XXIX missionaries, and our families, that the Lord may surround us with His protection and keep us steadfast in the mission.
For our Episcopal Advisory Council and faithful partners, that God may reveal Himself ever more deeply to them, strengthening their lives and vocations as they build for His Kingdom.
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