Is there wisdom in fearing God?

Psalm Reading: Psalm 111

For Sunday, Jan. 29, Year B − Epiphany 4

In the midst of premarital counseling, I spoke to a young couple about the plethora of things that cause hardship in marriages—trying to discern and mark the bumps that might be in the road ahead.

Filled with Fear

We covered family of origin and attitudes toward money. We talked about children. Did they plan to have them? What if they weren’t able to have kids? What sort of parenting styles made sense to them? How would they discipline their child?

The groom-to-be looked at me steadily and said, “I was afraid of my dad. All he had to do was walk in the room and I was filled with fear. I never want my child to look at me the way that I looked at my father.” 

Read more here and join the discussion on this week's Gospel text here.