The crank is spun, which pushes the stop sign, which propels the green foot, which kicks the bucket, spilling a ball down the blue track and onto a red track where it then strikes a skinny blue pole that lifts a mini hand, nudging a ball forward and into a red tub and then through a hole in the tub, landing on a teeter-totter, which sends a strange-looking man flying up and into a cup, which jolts the trap, which descends on the “unsuspecting” mouse. Maybe you’ve played the game Mouse Trap before, and you’ve enjoyed watching the chain reaction sequence. But not all chain reactions are enjoyable to watch. Have you ever stopped to consider what contributed to your own sinful responses in life? Or what about the things that contributed to those who have sinned against you? What action by a great-grandparent contributed to an action by a grandparent, which contributed to an action by a parent, which you now engage with? As we study 1 John 4, we’ll find that at the center of just about all of our sinful responses is fear. We’re all fearful, whether we admit it or not. And fear perpetuates itself in an endless cycle that spirals down to hell. What will break the cycle? What will enable us to choose love instead of continuing the cycle of fear? God’s Word has the answer. The love of God conquers fear and frees us to choose love one another.