“It takes a grown-up to look at the mirror directly and not run away screaming. The very point of maturity is to have no illusions about yourself.”
The quote above is taken from the piece Marti wrote about Knights, Princesses and Dragons that I am asking you to take the time to read today by clicking on the link below.. I think you will enjoy it. You may also wonder about it. That’s okay; it’s supposed to make you wonder.
But mostly, it’s supposed to make you act, or possibly identify why you are not. Marti primarily wrote it for me. It came out of numerous attempts by me to try to explain what’s been going on lately and why we’ve missed Catches and weekend mailings to MemberPartners and PrayerPartners — things I would never imagine myself doing, yet I have done.
My attempts to explain this were full of platitudes, spiritual cliches, and making confessions without any evidence of change. If I were still writing in my pre-computer style of scribbling on a yellow legal pad, I would be surrounded by wads of crumpled up attempts to write something I could never send.
The dragons in this story all have the same last name: it’s Fear. Fear is my nemesis. Fear is debilitating. It can freeze you in your tracks. But it is also an illusion. Run away, and the fear only grows bigger. Run towards it and it diminishes. Illusions about fear need to be run through, illusions about self need to be faced as well, but in a different way.
“Maturity is to have no illusions about yourself,” Marti wrote. To have no illusions about myself is to embrace all of what I see in that mirror and not run away screaming, but face into each one, and by the power of God, do something about it.
In the final picture at the end of our story, a knight has just let an arrow fly at a massive, scaly dragon. The artist has painted the arrow in mid air. From the looks of it, the arrow is going to harmlessly glance off the dragon’s scales and he’s going to wonder what the heck that little tick was he might have felt. In reality, the little arrow is going to pierce him through, and not only will he fall, he will disappear, because dragons represent fear, and fear dissipates when you walk into it.
So enough said. Read on and let me know if this reaches you in any way. Does it help you? Does it hinder you? What else would you like to explore? And please forgive me for taking so long to get here, and for missing you along the way.
I have much to do today so I am moving on. I’m out to slay some dragons.
The Knight, The Princess, and The Dragon
John Fischer The Catch 
Please, please consider thinking about your adduce, as I often learned not to ask a customer to read a lot or a bunch of (11 pages) Now I love you & your gorgeous wife, yet as I would rather not ask people to read a lot b/c simply been taught 95% of people would rather not… put it in a video…
I’ll ask you once again to consider talking to someone that can help you to do as you once did record yourself reading the Catch out-load…
Yes I know this was a long one, but we don’t do this all the time. Think of it as a bonus!
Working on the audio part. I think we will have it soon.
Like the thought as a bonus. (Going to use that w/ my customers)
It is both revealing and disheartening to realize how, through the decades, we’ve permitted these dragons to take up permanent residence in our personal kingdoms… and even nuzzle up to us in our hearts, heads, dreams, realities, and even our families.
When our status-quo is threatened by a potential challenge or other uncomfortable confrontation – whether great or small – we have these neighborhood dragons readily (and conveniently) available to:
a) give us a fright, and an excuse to scamper away from the unknown;
b) avoid at all costs, while we tiptoe around them because we’ve either over-calculated our weaknesses or under-estimated our strengths;
c) assent to a lopsided truce because we’ve grown used to their presence and, having been with us awhile, we’ve learned it’s best not to upset a dragon;
d) provide us a warped sense of comfort or contentment because, without them, who or what else would define us or our character?;
e) be slain.
Many of these dragons were passed down to us by family-members, well-meaning friends, acquaintances, people with less-scrupulous agendas, and other sources of readily-available information and misinformation.
Most of these dragons were introduced to us during our childhood and, unless we saw them for what they really were and vanquished them early on, we’ve grown accustomed to their presence though our adult years… occasionally allowing them to rear their ugly heads during difficult times and bring back those childish fears we were too immature to overcome.
At our ages, John, it is time to throw down the gauntlet, turn to face the fire-breathing demon, stand uprightly, firmly plant our staff into the ground, pull out our sword, and say – no, SHOUT LOUDLY! – to the dragon and his ilk, “You cannot pass! I am a servant of the One True God, wielder of His Word and His Light. You cannot pass! The dark fire will not avail you… Go back to the shadow! You cannot pass! Go back to the abyss! Fall into the nothingness that awaits you and your master!”
We’ve not many years left, John.
At this stage in our lives, we should fear nothing and we should not let fear dictate how we’ll finish our days.
Our remaining time will pass all too quickly for us to still be stuck in any mindset other than what Christ did for us – especially in the face of the fears confronting Him.
He has given us this wonderful gift of life.
It’s time we live it, not fear it.
Be courageous and encouraged, my friend. Shalom, Peace to you…
What a wonderful encouragement and challenge not to mention an enjoyable read! Thank you, Bob.
Thank you, Bob. Marti’s story and your response are the next two copy and paste projects that I will keep in my files permanently. One of my greatest frustrations involves my aging and the fact that as far as I’ve come, fear can still be a part of my life. I’d always hoped that someday when I’m…(as old as I am now) there will be nothing left for me to fear. That hasn’t happened thanks to those stupid relentless dragons. I always feel like, if I’m ready to leave earth and if I’m given the time to look back over everything, my only regrets will be the time spent being afraid of anything. What I’ll be proud of is pursuing God’s goodness through every period of my life as stated in the song, “All Thy Mercies”. And another quote from one of my favorites that has given me comfort through the years.
“You hold the key to love and fear all in your trembling hand. Just one key unlocks them both. It’s there at your command”
I love the story and hope to be helped by it. For the last few months I have been struggling with anxiety. Can you expand on the last two paragraphs of the story. I seem to be missing the point of these sentences: “To stop the Dragons of Fear ultimately engages all that is required. It is the struggle to push back the Dragons of Fear and the loneliness, hopelessness, and despair they bring.” Thank you.