“BE Safe” she told me as we were saying our goodbyes. Not long before I had told her all about my plans to go to Mozambique in which she questioned me if I had the shots I needed, and the safety of bus travel, etc.
Being involved in overseas missions, “Be Safe” is a fairly common phrase I hear, expressed by people who show a genuine concern for me and my safety. But honestly, it can be annoying. I know I was born to do more than be safe. Nor is it not what God asks of me. He says,
Be filled with the Holy Spirit- Eph 5:18
Be strong and courageous – Joshua 1:9
Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord- James 4:10
Rejoice always, pray without ceasing. 1 Thessalonians 5:16&17.
Do not be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind Romans 12:2
Now there is nothing wrong with being safe or encouraging me or others to be safe. It’s smart to be safe which can be wearing a seat belt or planning ahead, or having insurance, or saving money, etc. Sometimes safety is as easy as avoiding idiotic behavior like: attempting your favorite stunts from action movies or playing with rattle snakes or standing on top of a building during a lightening storm. There’s nothing wrong with praying for protection or traveling safety of loved ones or yourself. Clearly safety is a normal, human concern.
So why does it bother me when people tell me to be safe?
A few years ago I heard Louie Giglio teach about prayer. It changed my life. I am still humbled and challenged by what was said. He explained that the ideal way for us to pray would be the opposite of how we normally pray because we tend to be self-centered rather than God-centered in our prayers. For example, “God, please bless me and give me this” which isn’t wrong or bad, but consider praying “God, how can I be a blessing to you? How can I honor you and serve you? What can I give you?” A very different prayer, isn’t it? Giglio specifically addressed the prayer for protection and safety- a very normal, common prayer. A good thing to pray for but, in the Kingdom of God the glory of God always trumps personal safety. That’s right; God cares more about his glory than my personal safety. Skeptical? Let’s look at some examples.
1. Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-Nego. Three men were given the choice of bowing down to the golden statue (safe) or being cast into a fiery furnace (not safe). Did they play it safe? No. They said our God can save us from the fiery furnace and even if he doesn’t we’re still not going to bow down to you. Can you imagine the courage it would take to say that to a king, especially since he was giving them a second chance? But we know the story, that they weren’t burned because Jesus joined them in the fire. Then the king acknowledged that they were servants of the Most High God, mandated that anyone who spoke ill of their God would die, and the three men were promoted. Daniel 3
2. Apostle Paul. He obviously failed when it came to the protection and safety prayer: Imprisoned, shipwrecked, bitten by a snake, beaten, etc. Clearly “being safe” was not his top priority. But Paul goes down in history as one of the most important leaders of the early church, starting many churches, and writing several letters that are in the Bible. Paul’s lack of safety has resulted in millions coming to Christ. Aren’t you glad He counted his comforts as a loss for Christ (Phil. 3:7)
3. Louie Giglio told this story of an Australian missionary family who served in India. A father and his 2 young sons were sleeping in their car overnight and were burned to death by Muslim extremists. When his wife was interviewed by a national newspaper, it made the front cover when she said she forgave them because of Jesus Christ. So the Name of Jesus makes headlines in a nation of one billion people.
Clearly God used these people who were not “being safe” to expand his Kingdom and His renown. God uses persecution for His glory. Even today, there are so many martyrs in unsafe countries around the world. For instance, Voice of the Martyrs is an organization filled with stories of people who choose Christ rather than safety.
I don’t desire to be burned to death or beaten…I would much rather have an easy life without facing the kinds of obstacles I just mentioned. Fortunately that’s what God gives us a lot of times. I am very thankful that most of the time God does not ask me to comprise my safety to serve Him, usually I can obey God and be safe simultaneously.
I am weary of the phrase “be safe” because if using it as a guide, its easy to keep from doing what is right (what God has said), if ever it seems unsafe or simply uncomfortable. If I focus on “being safe” its easy for paralyzing fears to creep in, in the name of safety, thus leaving me immobile and defeated. But if I focus on being obedient and walking in the power of His Spirit, I am armed for battle, ready to fight off fears and any thing else, knowing I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.
But really, there’s only so much one can do to ensure safety anyways. There’s always a possibility of something terribly wrong happening- that’s what it means to be human- we aren’t perfect or invincible- but we are frail and vulnerable to diseases, natural disasters, all kinds of oppression, wars, homicide, and even freak accidents.
