“The sky is falling! The sky is falling!” so say the classic words of the childhood story of the little chicken who clamored for attention. They are words we remember, and sadly, words we hear every day.

There are numerous voices that attempt to speak into our thoughts and lives every day. Some speak blessing and hope, while others curses and fear. Some come with words of life, while others invoke words of death. The saddest part of all is that many of the voices of negativity come from within the body of Christ. It is as if the spirit of Chicken Little has taken the place of the Spirit of God.

Don’t get me wrong, there are things in our lives and in the world around us that should matter to us and there are times when we must speak a hard word to create a greater good. However, the children of the Most High God should not be sowing fear, hostility and death. We’ve received the words of life, from the One who came that we, “might have life and have it to the full.” (John 10:10) and we should be speaking them into a world drowning in negativity and death.

It was Jesus himself who told us, “Do not worry about your life…” (Matthew 6:25) It was a call and command rooted in faith; in the belief that God was able to fulfill his word and order our steps by it. Later, the Apostle Paul would tell his disciple Timothy, “God did not give us a spirit of fear, but a spirit of power, and of love, and of self-discipline.” (2 Timothy 1:7) God did not give us the Holy Spirit so we could perpetuate the fears of the world. Rather, we were given the power and love to make a kingdom difference. Might it be that the self-discipline mentioned in this passage was the discipline of keeping our heads in the face of adversity, or keeping our focus on Christ, when the voices around us are crying out for us to join them in their anxiety and fear?

There is more than enough political drama, more than enough relational drama and, dare we say, more than enough church drama. Maybe it is time for us to represent Christ, who did not waste his time running around frightening people with Caesar’s latest decision, or the latest bad news in the city, or even the latest gossip heard at the temple. Jesus used his time to bless others, to bring healing, and to invite his listeners to experience life. Isn’t it time for us to do the same?

Before his crucifixion, Jesus said he was giving his followers his peace. That can be our peace, even in time of chaos. And how can we forget Jesus’ words, “In this life you will have troubles, but take heart, I have overcome the world!” (John 6:33)

May you have peace, keep peace, and speak peace in Jesus Name.