True Security—An Elusive Goal
ARNOLD was a child who loved his stuffed toy tiger. Everywhere he went, he dragged it along with him—at play, to the dinner table, to his bed. For him, the tiger provided comfort, security. One day, there was a crisis. Tiger was missing!
As Arnold cried, his mother, father, and three older brothers scoured their large house to find the tiger. One of them eventually discovered it in a drawer. Evidently, Arnold had put it there and then had promptly forgotten where it was. The tiger was returned, and Arnold wiped away his tears. He felt happy and secure again.
How fine it would be if all problems could be solved that easily—as simply as finding a toy tiger in a drawer! For most people, however, questions of security are far more serious and complex than that. Just about everywhere, people wonder, ‘Will I become a victim of crime or violence? Am I in danger of losing my job? Is my family sure to have enough food? Will others avoid me because of my religion or my ethnic background?’
The number of people who lack security is immense. According to the United Nations, nearly three billion lack access not only to treatment of common diseases but also to essential drugs. More than one billion people languish in extreme poverty. Nearly one billion, although able to work, are not productively employed. The number of refugees is increasing. By the end of 1994, about 1 in every 115 people on earth had been forced to flee from their homes. Millions of lives are ruined as a result of the $500-billion-a-year narcotics trade that spawns countless acts of crime and violence. War devastates the lives of millions. During 1993 alone, 42 countries engaged in major conflicts, while 37 others experienced political violence.
War, poverty, crime, and other threats to human security are interrelated, and they are growing in number. There are no tiger-in-a-drawer solutions to such problems. In fact, humans will not solve them at all.
“Do not put your trust in nobles, nor in the son of earthling man, to whom no salvation belongs,” cautions God’s Word, the Bible. In whom, then, can we trust? This scripture continues: “Happy is the one who has the God of Jacob for his help, whose hope is in Jehovah his God, the Maker of heaven and earth, of the sea, and of all that is in them.”—Psalm 146:3-6.
Why can we trust in Jehovah to bring security to this earth? Is it possible to enjoy secure, happy lives now? How will God remove the barriers to human security?