1st Lady’s Blog – My Greatest Fear

I have had a fear of dogs for as long as I can remember. This fear stems back to an incident that happened when I was a child and I hadn’t too long arrived in this country.

The day started with the promise of fun and excitement as my mother announced she would take my sister and me to the pool. Mom told us to put on our bathing suits under our clothes, but when I went to look for mine, I remembered that it was at my aunt’s house about one block away. My sister and I walked over to retrieve my bathing suit. On our way back, however, my sister went ahead of me and while I lagged behind, I noticed a large dog beginning to growl at me. I became even more afraid when it began to bark at me. And as I started to run to my apartment building, the dog began to chase me.

I can recall faintly hearing people yelling out of their windows for me to stop running – they knew this would only cause the dog to chase me more – but fear gripped me and I could not stop. Just as I reached the entrance to my apartment building, I felt pain shoot through my entire body as the dog bit me. Needless to say it ruined my trip to the pool that day.

Another instance when I was bitten by a dog was when I was thirteen years old. By now my mother had moved our family to Staten Island – the forgotten borough of New York. I was playing with a couple of friends and we decided to play near an abandoned house. Apparently, that wasn’t the best idea because as we played, several dogs emerged from the property and immediately my group of friends and I began to run. Sadly, I could never run very fast so I lagged behind, and like before, I got bit by one of the dogs.

Now that I am older I still won’t go near dogs. My kids have begged for a dog since they were young and I would not concede. I don’t pet anyone’s dog even when they tell me, “He doesn’t bite.” My response is always a cynical, “then how does he eat his food?”

The last confrontation I had with some dogs came several years ago. I was working in Manassas, Virginia and while I was driving to work I had a tire blowout. It was in a deserted area except for one solitary house directly across the street from where I was stranded. I walked over to the house and knocked on the door – this was in the pre-cell phone era. I continued to knock for a while, but no one came to the door. As I turned to walk back to the car, my greatest fear came to fruition. Two Dobermans and a Rottweiler came charging towards me. This time my fear was so great it literally paralyzed me. The three dogs were barking and growling at me and I felt trapped and hopeless. I was certain they would maul me because no one was around to help.

All of a sudden a great determination to live overwhelmed me and I began to use the power God had given me. I pleaded the blood of Jesus and told the dogs that I commanded them in the name of Jesus not to bite me. To my amazement, just like God answered the prayers of Daniel in the lion’s den, God immediately shut the mouth of the dogs and I was able to cross the street safely. Once I was in the safety of my car, the dogs began to bark again. But this time, I was no longer fearful or in harm’s way.

Several years before this event, the Lord revealed to me a scripture that changed my life. “Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world” (I John 4:4; KJV). I never forgot that verse and on that fateful day I decided to exercise my God-given power. Always remember, it does not matter what your greatest fear is, because God has given us power to overcome it.