5 Things You Should Actually be Afraid Of

A few weeks ago, my husband and I settled in for a movie night. It was my husband’s turn to pick the movie and I gave him complete freedom to choose anything he wanted (except for one movie that I hated and never want to see again). 

He chose “World War Z.” I knew it was a zombie movie going in, but that was all I had heard. 

It is actually a 2013 movie starring Brad Pitt as a United Nations employee who is hired to determine what caused a pandemic of humans turning into zombies. (In case you were wondering, this is not my kind of movie). 

The film isn’t rolling three minutes before a zombie attack takes place. I will save you the gruesome details, but let me just say I now have images ingrained in my mind that I’ve been trying to erase for weeks. 

Surprisingly, I made it through the whole movie, though it is now on my Never Watch Again list. For two hours, I sat paralyzed with fear, clinging to my husband and waiting for the next zombie attack to happen. I assured myself that it was just a movie, but the constant blood and chaos felt all too real. 

It was silly of me to be so scared of a far-fetched movie about creatures that aren’t even real. I know that. And trust me; I will be avoiding all fear-inducing zombie movies in the future. 

But there are some things in our world today that we should be afraid of. 

1. Christian Persecution

Christians are constantly being oppressed for their faith all over the globe. Groups such as ISIS and Boko Haram terrorize Christians as they attempt to establish Islamic caliphates. Tens of thousands have been killed and millions more have been forced out of their homes to live as refugees. 

Even in the United States, Christians face a degree of persecution. Atheist groups have demanded that Christian athletes refrain from thanking God for the ability to play sports. Christian business owners often face discrimination and harassment for running their business based on Christian principles. Persecution is a real and dangerous threat, and actually worth our concern.

2. Poverty rate

According to globalissues.org, nearly half of the world, or three billion people, live on less than $2.50 a day. Over 80 percent of world’s population lives on under $10 a day. 

Adults and children die from circumstances of poverty every day. A lack of food, clean water to drink and hygiene and medical supplies results in the death over 22,000 children everyday. Millions more are underweight or stunted. 

Additionally, 121 million children are unable to attend school. If the world spent less than 1 percent of it weapons budget on education, every child would have been able to attend school by 2000; it didn’t happen. The poverty crisis is out of control and it is scary that not more has been done to stop it. 

3. Pornography and human trafficking 

Pornography use is shockingly common in the world today, and that includes inside the Christian sphere. The porn industry is worth a whopping $97 billion worldwide and is not slowing down anytime soon. Playboy magazine actually just announced that it would no longer feature nude women. Why? Because it can’t sell it. People have access to porn online that is both more hardcore and free to anyone with internet access. 

Human trafficking often become a byproduct of pornography. It is easy for the women (and men, and children) to get trapped inside a world of slavery. Victims are often lured into the industry with promises of work, stability, education, or relationships. According to traffickingresourcecenter.org, there are 20.9 million human trafficking victims globally; tens of thousands live in the U.S. While crisis centers exist across the country, the prevalence of this problem is something to worry about. 

4. Declining influence on the family 

Family structure in the U.S. is rapidly changing. No longer does the typical family consist of a mother, father, and children. With the divorce rate between 40 and 50 percent, single parent homes are normal. Oftentimes, children grow up without either a male or female role model present. 

Now, many couples choosing not to marry at all. Cohabitation is common, and many cohabiting couples choose to have children without getting married. 

Of course, the American family landscape will continue to change after the national legalization of same-sex marriage last June. We may see an increase in adoptions, as couples who were previously prohibited from getting married are now able to marry and may want to raise families of their own. 

5. Rise of the nones

Pew Research Center determined this year that the religious “nones,” a combined group of atheists, agnostics, and the religiously unaffiliated, are on the rise. According to the study, the nones rose from 16 percent of American adults in 2007 to 23 percent today. At the same time, the number of those who identify as Christians fell from 78 percent to 71 percent of adults. 

Christianity is rapidly shrinking, and that is truly a scary thought. It means that we are shirking the responsibility outlined for us in Matthew 28:19. “Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and Holy Spirit.” 

The next time you’re tempted to watch a horror flick, stop and examine our world instead. With problems like this, we have no need for zombie movies. 

Carrie Dedrick is the Family Editor of Crosswalk.com. 

Publication date: October 29, 2015