Feeling Safe as the Opposite of Fear

After talking so much about fear, it is probably good to examine its opposites.  Courage could be described as the opposite of fear, but it is more specifically a force that opposes fear.  Both can exist at the same time, since courage is what it takes to confront or overcome one's fears.  Safety seems like a more accurate opposite of fear.  They can't exist at the same time; to feel safe is to be without fear.

Similar to fear, safety has a variety of aspects to it.  Physical safety is the most obvious form, and we see that around us all the time.  Many precautions are taken to ensure our physical safety, from seatbelts in cars, to those helpful "Warning-Contents may be Hot" labels on your coffee cup.  No matter what you do, you will never be totally physically safe, because your body is an unpredictable living organism.  True safety will only be actually experienced once we get to Heaven.  But it is possible to feel safe here on earth, and that sense of peace is a gift from God.

There are other aspects of safety beyond the physical realm.  Feeling emotionally safe is what builds trust, and eventually intimacy.  Emotional things are much harder for me to define, but I recently came across a quote that really nailed this idea:

"Oh the inexpressible comfort of feeling safe with a person, having neither to weigh thoughts nor measure words, but pouring them all right out, just as they are -- chaff and grain together -- certain that a faithful hand will take and sift them, keep what is worth keeping, and with the breath of kindness blow the rest away." — Elizabeth Barrett Browning

I honestly don't know the precise original context, as I found this in excerpt form, but I like what it is communicating.  Letting one's guard down requires trust in someone to ensure our emotional safety.  Intimacy requires trust, and trust is built in a safe place.

People who don’t want to be deceived are looking for intellectual safety.  Having a “safe place,” to openly discuss new ideas and weigh their merit, as a collective effort in combination with others, nurtures growth.  The ideas in question can be on any topic upon which one can be deceived.  The level of safety doesn’t counter the possibility of deception, it just fosters open communication, and that is what prevents deception.

Just because something is safe, doesn’t necessarily make it good.  Our comfort zone is where we feel safe, but never getting outside our comfort zone will prevent us from growing.  Safety is an important part of life, but shouldn’t be an objective for its own sake.  God is the only one that can provide true safety, and we will probably have to venture outside our comfort zones to truly find it.