
"The thing that determined whether the snakes were agents of death or of life for the Hebrew people was the nature of the Hebrew people’s relationship to God. When they turned away from God, the snakes were agents of death; when they turned toward God, the snake was an agent of life. It stands to reason, then, that the thing that determines whether our fears and anxieties are agents of death or of life for us is the nature of our relationship to God. When we turn away from God, our fears and anxieties can overtake us and become agents of death. But when we turn toward God, our fears and anxieties can become the vehicles by which God heals us, and they become agents of life."