Sinking sand or solid rock?
Faith, they say, can move mountains, and I believe it. I've seen figurative mountains in my own life move.
I say I have faith, and I do, but when the rubber meets the road, and the potholes and sink-holes, and detours pop up, faith is called into question. We grow weary, dodging the holes, we complain about the detours. We whine when the road seems longer than we wanted it to be or even expected. We say we have faith, but here's my question...when it comes right down to it, how much faith do we really have? Is our faith on sinking sand, or the Solid Rock?
This actually brings to mind Abraham and Isaac - Abraham was instructed to sacrifice his only son on Mt. Moriah. This was roughly three days journey from where he had encamped, and during that journey, Abraham had every opportunity and option of calling it quits, but he didn't. He knew, by faith, that God had it handled. When the last stick was placed, the fire lit, and the last knot made, and he placed his son on the altar...when the knife was poised to strike, God got his attention with a ram in a thicket. By faith, Abraham knew that even if his hand was not stayed, that his son would still be the fulfillment of the promise God made to him, that the number of "sons"(descendants) would be uncountable.
Zechariah and Elizabeth are another example of faith. The culture in which they lived was such that if a woman was barren, that is, had no children, that she was ostracized and spoken of as if she harbored some evil sin in her life. Basically, when it was socializing time, she sat in the chair in the corner and was whispered about in conversation. She was the odd-man-out, so to speak, the ugly duckling, or any of the other fun sayings about someone who just wasn't like the others. Elizabeth was one of these ducklings. She and her husband Zechariah had prayed for a son for many years, and God heard her prayers. She stayed faithful to her duties, she was joyful in her walk, was helpful when the need arose, and God counted these things as faithful. When she was "past the time of child-bearing," God answered her prayers, and John the Baptizer was born. By faith, Elizabeth stood firm, knowing her God would supply, and she gave birth to the one who would go before the Messiah, announcing His arrival, and baptizing Him personally.
The Bible abounds with examples of faith, Joshua, David, Daniel, but it also shows many whose faith was not what they believed it to be. The most common one of these is the Rich young Ruler, who asked Jesus what he had to do to obtain Eternal Life. When he was told to sell all he had, and give to the poor (not all he had sold, but to simply give to the poor, the amount was never stated), this young man was crushed as he had great wealth. His faith was based in what he had, not on Who had him.
Peter comes to mind in the faith walk. He, probably is the closest to what I would define my faith to be. He loved Jesus. He vowed to never forsake Him, but when the feathers hit the fan, his faith was shaken to the core. Its not really that he never recovered, because he did, and was known for his faith and ministry. But when reality hits, you never know what you're going to do. Are you going to sink, or are you going to reach for the One who knows you better than you know yourself?
The faith of Jesus is another example of faith beyond what we can comprehend. Yes, yes, Jesus was fully God, giving Him the knowledge of what was to come, but He was also fully Man, one who had the ability to fully experience all of the emotions being human contained. We can speculate on many things, but the fact that He'd asked God to take the "cup" from Him shows that He perhaps was fearful of the upcoming crucifixion...as well He should have been. No one likes pain. But, by faith in His Father, He continued His journey to the cross, where we have been washed by His sacrifice for all mankind. Where we received salvation for all of our sins, past, present, and future, were we to accept His gift. His faith in His Father was extraordinary, and one that we should always choose to follow.
A dear family in my church is having their faith tried to the point that I wouldn't wish on anyone. The father of that family has been diagnosed with FTD , Frontotemporal Dementia, a form of dementia that affects all generations, but can be found in people as young as their 20's. This dear man has just come to his 40th birthday. It is speculated that from onset to completion is a total of five years (I could be wrong in that number, but it is a short span). The decline is rapid and even on my worst enemy I would not wish this. This family has shown remarkable strength, courage and an unwavering faith in God that He will see them through this, no matter what the outcome. If I ever had to call someone in real life a super hero, this wife and mother would be it. Her grace under this enormous pressure, her strength for her family, for her husband, and for her friends is amazing, and I know...I know that it is because of her unshakable, firmly grounded faith in the One who moves mountains, Who Himself was raised from the dead, and Who has counted every one of her tears.
Finally, this brings me to the case of a little girl who has gone missing here in the Houston area. Let me tell you, if you think you have faith that can move mountains, something like this will leave you questioning how much faith you actually have. The motive in the case is unclear. The who and why are yet to be determined. The mother and "stepfather" are both being tried in the social/media arena and found wanting. The "stepfather" has already been charged on a class 2 Felony, and bail not only set, but reduced.
Taking a look at that, I have to wonder about the Mother. Not whether or not she had a hand in the disappearance, but what her faith is like right now. All I see is shell-shock. Everyone handles tragedy differently, and she is no exception. She is in shock, that's what I see. The facts are not all in, the crime scene testing is not complete. The only fact that is apparent is that the "stepfather" did some heavy cleaning with bleach which in and of itself is remarkable, because it's been said he never lifted a finger to clean. Ever. My thing is, when she comes out of the shock, if she has faith in Jesus, what will that faith look like? Will she have stood strong in that faith that a resolution would come to bear, or would she have crumbled believing that nothing is sure, not even faith.
Let's face it, we really don't know how strong our faith is until something comes along to shake it silly. Whether its obedience, or betrayal, or illness or even possibly death, we never know how our faith is going to bear out until that moment comes. As I sit here writing this, I know that my faith has been shaken a time or two, but never to these extremes. Close, but not quite. I don't know if I would be like my friend at church, or like Peter, high-tailing it when the going gets rough, or if I would stand around, shell-shocked at the surreal scene going on around me. I would hope that my faith would stand strong and that I wouldn't cave. I believe that is how I would be, my very being believes that, but until we are standing in that very moment, we can never be quite sure.
As we begin our week, I ask that you would lift these two families up in prayer. For continued strength, courage, and steadfast faith for the one. For the other, for a swift resolution to the case, and for all who loved that little girl, a solid faith that swift justice will be served.
I say I have faith, and I do, but when the rubber meets the road, and the potholes and sink-holes, and detours pop up, faith is called into question. We grow weary, dodging the holes, we complain about the detours. We whine when the road seems longer than we wanted it to be or even expected. We say we have faith, but here's my question...when it comes right down to it, how much faith do we really have? Is our faith on sinking sand, or the Solid Rock?
This actually brings to mind Abraham and Isaac - Abraham was instructed to sacrifice his only son on Mt. Moriah. This was roughly three days journey from where he had encamped, and during that journey, Abraham had every opportunity and option of calling it quits, but he didn't. He knew, by faith, that God had it handled. When the last stick was placed, the fire lit, and the last knot made, and he placed his son on the altar...when the knife was poised to strike, God got his attention with a ram in a thicket. By faith, Abraham knew that even if his hand was not stayed, that his son would still be the fulfillment of the promise God made to him, that the number of "sons"(descendants) would be uncountable.
Zechariah and Elizabeth are another example of faith. The culture in which they lived was such that if a woman was barren, that is, had no children, that she was ostracized and spoken of as if she harbored some evil sin in her life. Basically, when it was socializing time, she sat in the chair in the corner and was whispered about in conversation. She was the odd-man-out, so to speak, the ugly duckling, or any of the other fun sayings about someone who just wasn't like the others. Elizabeth was one of these ducklings. She and her husband Zechariah had prayed for a son for many years, and God heard her prayers. She stayed faithful to her duties, she was joyful in her walk, was helpful when the need arose, and God counted these things as faithful. When she was "past the time of child-bearing," God answered her prayers, and John the Baptizer was born. By faith, Elizabeth stood firm, knowing her God would supply, and she gave birth to the one who would go before the Messiah, announcing His arrival, and baptizing Him personally.
The Bible abounds with examples of faith, Joshua, David, Daniel, but it also shows many whose faith was not what they believed it to be. The most common one of these is the Rich young Ruler, who asked Jesus what he had to do to obtain Eternal Life. When he was told to sell all he had, and give to the poor (not all he had sold, but to simply give to the poor, the amount was never stated), this young man was crushed as he had great wealth. His faith was based in what he had, not on Who had him.
Peter comes to mind in the faith walk. He, probably is the closest to what I would define my faith to be. He loved Jesus. He vowed to never forsake Him, but when the feathers hit the fan, his faith was shaken to the core. Its not really that he never recovered, because he did, and was known for his faith and ministry. But when reality hits, you never know what you're going to do. Are you going to sink, or are you going to reach for the One who knows you better than you know yourself?
The faith of Jesus is another example of faith beyond what we can comprehend. Yes, yes, Jesus was fully God, giving Him the knowledge of what was to come, but He was also fully Man, one who had the ability to fully experience all of the emotions being human contained. We can speculate on many things, but the fact that He'd asked God to take the "cup" from Him shows that He perhaps was fearful of the upcoming crucifixion...as well He should have been. No one likes pain. But, by faith in His Father, He continued His journey to the cross, where we have been washed by His sacrifice for all mankind. Where we received salvation for all of our sins, past, present, and future, were we to accept His gift. His faith in His Father was extraordinary, and one that we should always choose to follow.
A dear family in my church is having their faith tried to the point that I wouldn't wish on anyone. The father of that family has been diagnosed with FTD , Frontotemporal Dementia, a form of dementia that affects all generations, but can be found in people as young as their 20's. This dear man has just come to his 40th birthday. It is speculated that from onset to completion is a total of five years (I could be wrong in that number, but it is a short span). The decline is rapid and even on my worst enemy I would not wish this. This family has shown remarkable strength, courage and an unwavering faith in God that He will see them through this, no matter what the outcome. If I ever had to call someone in real life a super hero, this wife and mother would be it. Her grace under this enormous pressure, her strength for her family, for her husband, and for her friends is amazing, and I know...I know that it is because of her unshakable, firmly grounded faith in the One who moves mountains, Who Himself was raised from the dead, and Who has counted every one of her tears.
Finally, this brings me to the case of a little girl who has gone missing here in the Houston area. Let me tell you, if you think you have faith that can move mountains, something like this will leave you questioning how much faith you actually have. The motive in the case is unclear. The who and why are yet to be determined. The mother and "stepfather" are both being tried in the social/media arena and found wanting. The "stepfather" has already been charged on a class 2 Felony, and bail not only set, but reduced.
Taking a look at that, I have to wonder about the Mother. Not whether or not she had a hand in the disappearance, but what her faith is like right now. All I see is shell-shock. Everyone handles tragedy differently, and she is no exception. She is in shock, that's what I see. The facts are not all in, the crime scene testing is not complete. The only fact that is apparent is that the "stepfather" did some heavy cleaning with bleach which in and of itself is remarkable, because it's been said he never lifted a finger to clean. Ever. My thing is, when she comes out of the shock, if she has faith in Jesus, what will that faith look like? Will she have stood strong in that faith that a resolution would come to bear, or would she have crumbled believing that nothing is sure, not even faith.
Let's face it, we really don't know how strong our faith is until something comes along to shake it silly. Whether its obedience, or betrayal, or illness or even possibly death, we never know how our faith is going to bear out until that moment comes. As I sit here writing this, I know that my faith has been shaken a time or two, but never to these extremes. Close, but not quite. I don't know if I would be like my friend at church, or like Peter, high-tailing it when the going gets rough, or if I would stand around, shell-shocked at the surreal scene going on around me. I would hope that my faith would stand strong and that I wouldn't cave. I believe that is how I would be, my very being believes that, but until we are standing in that very moment, we can never be quite sure.
As we begin our week, I ask that you would lift these two families up in prayer. For continued strength, courage, and steadfast faith for the one. For the other, for a swift resolution to the case, and for all who loved that little girl, a solid faith that swift justice will be served.
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