They say God speaks to us in a still small voice. So, we have to be really attentive to listen to His whisper. But in this case, He was almost shouting it out to me! Well, He got my attention.
As I was doing my quiet time couple of weeks back on the 18th of July, the article for that day was something about faith. It was not about faith as in faith (you know what I mean), but it was about trusting God with our lives, for He sees the big picture and we don't (okay, it is about faith). I had no idea why, but the subject of faith kept lurking in the back of my mind. I thought of publishing a post on 'Faith', but I really had no idea what to write. So I stuffed it back to the back of my mind.
Two Sundays ago, Dad preached on some great men in the Bible having great faith, like Enoch, Noah and Jacob (from Hebrews 11:1-7). Faith again! Just a coincidence, I thought. But at the back of my mind, it bothered me that the subject of faith kept recurring in my everyday life. Then, last Sunday, again his sermon was on faith-- "A Faith Worth Duplicating" (Hebrews 11:8-16) on the example of Abraham's faith. Well, I thought, he was continuing the passage, of course it was on the same subject.
I got the shock of my life when I opened to today's passage in Our Daily Bread. "The Leap" was the title. Without looking at the rest of the article, I knew what 'leap' that is-- the leap of faith. It turned out, indeed, to be the leap of faith, and the Bible verse for today is exactly the same verse Dad preached on on Sunday. It can't be a coincidence. There is definitely more to it. The words were jumping out at me, grabbing me, bidding me to lend them my ears.
I think God is trying to teach me a lesson on faith, on placing my trust wholly on Him. I really have no idea which area of my life He is referring to, although I feel strongly that it is very much regarding my future, my career path and education. So, my prayer partner, if you are reading this, do remember me in your prayer, that God will show me even more clearly which aspect of my life is He wants me to entrust to Him.
Faith is really a big word. Having faith means believing in something you cannot see. It is like walking with your eyes closed, like Abraham, "obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going". I must admit it sounds scary. Those of you who went to the "Heart of Worship" retreat will know what I mean. Remember the game we played where the players were blindfolded and all they did was to listen and obey the instructions their respective team leaders gave? Yvonne will definitely know what I mean. Although the game was played on an open field with just a few trees at the end of the field, the 'blind men' were so afraid to move forward. They were told to run, and they 'ran' (or pretended to run), which made those of us who were not blindfolded feel like laughing our heads off (the way they 'ran' was hilarious). The trees were so far away and they were on an open field, yet every time they take a step, it was with uncertainty and fear.
Having faith in God is something like that. Taking a leap of faith is like walking with blindfolds. We are uncertain and we are afraid, because we do not knows what lies ahead. When God says, "Go ahead! Run! I've prepared a way for you," we who are blinded to what lies beyond the present try to run or pretend to run, but just like the players, every step was taken with uncertainty and fear. I can imagine God, just like those leaders who were not blindfolded, who were able to see the whole scenario, must be laughing his head off to see us so frightened to take even a single step when the road before us is probably like the open field, with no barriers and with even more space for us to roam free.
Taking a leap of faith means to really run (and run with all your might!) when God tells you to run, even though you are blindfolded and know not what lies ahead, whether a it is a rocky path or an open field. It is not easy. In fact, it is never easy. Those who played the game know it well. However, no matter what lies ahead, we can find solace in the promise God made to us in Jeremiah 29:11. "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." Isn't that just beautiful? Now we can be sure that the Lord will not make us run into a big tree. Even if He does, it is probably to prevent us from running into a bigger tree, or just to knock some much needed sense into our heads.
This brings to mind Ian's theory about the lamp and spot light. "This is my opinion why God doesn't reveal the blueprint of our lives slap in our faces but takes us through each step day by day. In Psalm 119:105, it reads "Your word is a lamp unto my feet and a light for my path". It didn't say "Your word is a spotlight for my path". Spotlights are very powerful and can shine a whole way down a road and reveal everything. But instead it is a lamp. You know how a lamp shines light right? Short distances only..." It is a lesson on faith. God wants us to trust him with every step we take along the way. Not just once in a while, or to seek his opinion as a second advice or when we do not know what we do, but to trust His plan for our lives with every step we take, whether it is one small step or one big leap.
I had been struggling hard to trust God wholly, after all, I am not Abraham and it is frightening to walk in the dark, not knowing where I am headed. What if God leads me to somewhere I do not want to go? What if He has a different plan for me? A plan different from mine? However, along the way, I have come to realised that there is no point in arguing with God. After all, He has the bird's-eyes-view of my life, when all I see is the present. It will really be stupid for the blindfolded players to insist on having their own way and disobey the directions given by the team leaders. There is such a higher chance of them running into one of the big trees, or even run out of the field.
P.S: Hey Ian, sorry for violating your copyright. Hope you don't mind...
Tuesday, August 14, 2007
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
3 comments:
Yea, indeed faith is a very big word. It takes a lot of effort to believe in things which you cannot see, like God's future plan for all of us.
The game that u guys played during the retreat can best describe how important faith is. As u have said, even there were some of u guys who felt afraid when walking blindfolded though it's quite a big area. This is because they can't see anything.
But, anyway, we can always take comfort that God already has a major plan for us, as stated in Jeremiah 29:11, though we have our own plans as well. All we need to do is to just trust God that he will lead us through His own plan.
hmm...juz want to say smthg. for me, faith is not something uncertain but something certain.
"Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see." hebrews 5:1
note the words 'sure' and 'certain'. yes, we do not know what the future will be like but we know for certain where the path will eventually lead-a glorious home at the end. even along the way, we are certain that God is with us.
Feeling fear, worried, scared, etc are all normal human expressions. they are beneficial to a degree but not in excessive amounts. feeling that way actually will lead u to depend on God more. If u dun feel those feelings and feel confident all the time, will u depend on God so much?
Hey, Ian! Thanks for dropping your opinion. I think it is certain and it is for sure with regards to the final destination of our journey. However, the journey itself is still as unknown. We still cannot be 100% sure of how the road that leads to the destination will be. Whether it is a rocky path, a muddy road or a well paved street. If the whole road is lit up for us, we wouldn't turn to God anymore. Instead we will find our own way. But we can always be sure that God has a superior plan for our lives.
Post a Comment