Faith

My friend Kristin sent me this:

Meseidy - wrote this awhile ago - hope it encourages you though.


I've been having some deep thoughts recently. The kind that keep me up at night. The kind that plague me as I drive from here to there. The kind of thoughts that rip off the blinders and the deceit that I've somehow enabled myself to comfortably live behind. The kind of thoughts that either enable me to run toward God or choose to walk away from Him.

Faith. What is faith? Yes, Hebrews 11 gives us a great definition, "Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see." However, my feeble mind likes to be able to SEE. I want to be able to grab hold of what I hope for and then call it mine. Is it truly faith? No. And yet, my own life requires of me faith at every turn. I must trust others. I must trust and believe without yet seeing or having full knowledge.

Allow me to explain myself. I go for my State Inspection for my car. The mechanic tells me I'm below standards and thus need a brake job. Do I think I need a brake job? No, my car stops - to me that means my brakes work. However, this mechanic (who has God plastered all over the walls by the way) tells me I need a brake job. I, in faith and trust, have to agree with him because he is much more knowledgable about cars than I am. Thus, I get a brake job.

For another example, let's think about going to the doctor's office. We may have a slight cough or a bit of pain; however, we have know idea what is causing it or how to get rid of it. So we go to the doctor and he gives a diagnosis. We have to trust that what he believes is wrong with our body to be true. For the most part, we believe him and therefore take the medicine and ultimately get better. We have just put some faith in the doctor because we believed that he was more knowledgable than we are.

Faith is more than just hoping - it's trusting. Scripture tells us that the promises of God are yes and amen; however, how often have I been caught between the torrents of two waves and questioned His promises? How many times have I been forced to see beyond what my eyes tell me I'm seeing? How many times have I been reluctant to reach out for the hand I could not see and chosen instead for what I could?

Has God given you a promise? Can you back it up with His word? Has He confirmed it to you? Then sister, believe and hold on to it. Let your faith grasp it with all your heart. And know, know that even though it may feel as though your wait for the promise is taking a lifetime, know that our God will keep His promise. You see, just like the doctor, just like the mechanic, our God is more knowledgable than we are. He knows our full potential, and He loves us so much that He's willing to stretch us. Sometimes, I feel like I'm Elastic Girl. I often wonder how much more I can stretch. I always do, and I always bounce back.

When caught in the middle between the giving of the promise and the fulfillment of the promise keep the faith. Trust in the God who sees and knows more than we do, and then take up the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, as well as the shield of faith and pray.

Pressing on,
Kristin =)

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