I live a short distance from Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport. My husband and I flew through Reagan in mid-January. Two weeks later, on January 29, 2025, a United States Army Black Hawk helicopter collided with an American Airlines jet–the latter was just minutes away from landing. The collision sent 67 souls into the icy waters of the Potomac River. No one survived. This horrific accident, so close to my home, reminded me of what is always true: Death can come at any time.

The Potomac River plane crash rattled the nation and captured our attention for weeks. The unforeseen nature of the incident stirred some anxieties about death. According to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) “the inevitability of death itself fosters fear of death for human beings in both conscious and unconscious” ways. This anxiety can affect Christians and non-Christians alike. The same NIH study found that both religious and non-religious people fear death or the process of dying. Simply put, a faithful church-attending Christian can wake up to the news of a shocking disaster and suddenly find herself gripped by the fear of death.

How does our redemption in Christ speak to our fears at these moments? What does God’s abiding presence mean in moments of anxiety? Where is security in a world of unexpected calamity? Is there good news for brothers and sisters who fear death? We can find answers to these questions from Scripture–and some encouragement from a 1678 Christian classic.

Continue at New Growth Press.