I went to the mailbox Tuesday morning. I forgot to get the mail Monday evening, so as I took the trash to the curb for pickup, I grabbed the mail. Right on the top of the stack was a letter with big, bold print TREASURERY DEPARTMENT, IRS! Oh great, what now?

Now, I am not a tax evader nor am I delinquent on my taxes. I pay what is required and most times more than that. Now, I don’t just voluntarily give government money, but sometimes the work required to get the deduction available is more work than the deduction.

Nor am I unfamiliar with letters from the IRS. As a Minister, I have received more than my fair share over the years. Most have been clerical errors. One particular year I got my oldest daughter’s social security number wrong. This took several months, phone calls and a trip to Tulsa to the IRS office to resolve. But, the letter saying I owed $2,300 plus penalties almost gave me an ulcer.

Another year questions about my professional expense came to question. Again, lengthy process, a bunch of documents mailed and a whole lot of grief throughout the process.

The last one involved child deductions. Jill and I had taken two girls in our home to care for while their parents were incarcerated for drug charges. We had custody as guardians and claimed them as deductions. For some reason this threw up all kinds of red flags. Same story as before, heart failure when you see the letter, send documents (some up to three times) to different offices only to be passed on to another office and having it settled by the original case worker everything started with. I thought I would pull my hair out going through all this. Every month we received a letter with the initials IRS on it and my stomach just churned.

And today…I have no idea what warrants the letter. The IRS has never said. At first it sounded like someone had already filed a return using my social security number. Then a letter came informing me that the agency was behind and moving slow (like molasses?), they would keep me posted.

The latest letter just needs employment information (pay stubs and salary totals). Not sure what that has to do with moving slow.

To your next question (because I know you all asked it), no I do not do my returns. I have a guy that has done my taxes several years and been with me through tax-IRS debacles. I freak out and stress, Steve, he just gets mad and has some not so nice words for agency.

Maybe I am alone here and just weird. But, those three little letters, IRS, make me freeze. The power of the agency is frightening. I have the horror stories about bank accounts frozen, liens put on property and locks placed on property. My mind automatically goes to the worst scenario.

This made me wonder about the things that make our hearts stop (metaphorically speaking, of course). It could be an overdraft notice from the bank. Perhaps that little stick that the end turns blue or pink to indicate a pregnancy or not. The call from or visit to the doctor’s office with results of the test, malignant or benign. For the graduate for high school, it could be the letter from a college informing of acceptance or not. These are just a few examples.

The Bible tells us many places not to fear, fear not I am always with you or let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. But Jesus tells his disciples, “And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.”

So what should make us truly fearful is God. You see the moment we take our last breath on earth we will stand before God and await the verdict of guilty or not guilty; HEAVEN or HELL. And yet, we seem to be more worried about a letter in the mail with three simple initials. What should make our heart stop is knowing one day we will hear the word “depart from me I never knew you” (Matt. 7:23) or not finding your name in the Lamb’s Book of Life (Rev. 20:11-15).

As frightening as the IRS is, I know I have abided by the law, had an accountant figure and submit and have nothing to worry about. Can we say that about our eternal life? I know I am saved, I have a personal relationship with Jesus. As frightening as judgement is, I know I have nothing to worry about (Rom. 8:38-39, John 10:28-29 & Heb. 6:4-6). My name is written, I am sealed and in the words of the Apostle Paul, “For this reason I also suffer these things; nevertheless I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed and am persuaded that He is able to keep what I have committed to Him until that Day.”

Never Fearful, Bro. Tim