The older I get, the more I realize I have so much to learn and have so far to go on my spiritual journey. Being a lifelong learner is imperative and essential to spiritual growth, but time and again I find myself struggling with that concept. To learn means "to gain knowledge or understanding," and as much as I'd like to think I've "learned" how to actively live out my faith, I haven't truly done this as much as I thought. Daily I need the reminder to put my faith into action.
I often think of those men and women who have gone before us and demonstrated faith in a great God. Abraham was promised a son in his old age and honestly I can't blame Sarah for laughing with doubt when she was told she'd give birth well past the age of child-bearing. Abraham's example of faith continues to be demonstrated years later at the pending sacrifice of his promised son. When Abraham didn't hold anything back, God intervened and provided the ram in the thicket. Abraham obeyed, willing to trust beyond the circumstantial landscape, and it was credited to him as righteousness.
Hebrews states, "Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.and without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him." (Hebrews 11:1, 6). Further in the passage, Hebrews 11:13 states that: "All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance." Now, I like to check boxes and complete tasks (Get 'er done!) and like the "do" of being a Christ follower. To walk by faith means I must embrace God fully and consistently even when things don't happen in a reasonable timetable or a manner in which I believe they should.
Recently, a close friend called me in the early morning and told me that God miraculously cured him of his bout with cancer. Praise God! I can't help but think, though, of the countless others who, after years of prayer and medicine, don't see a healing from a terminal illness. Or never see their rebellious child come to the Lord. Or continue to face financial hardship. Because we live in a fallen world (where sin, Satan and the forces of darkness are alive and active), life sometimes doesn't make sense. But I am confident that in the midst of this, God is providential, faithful and good. Our brief encounters with pain, suffering and unfortunate circumstances come with our best in mind and pale in comparison to what awaits us in eternity.
As I watch modern day saints in the faith (Vonette Bright, Joni Erickson, John Stott and others), I am encouraged to keep the faith. They don't lose heart when difficulty and challenges appear but, instead, continue to trust the faithful One. They've established a trust relationship that rests on the foundational basis of God's character rather than their circumstances, realizing that He knows the beginning from the end and holds the present and future in His hand. At the end of the day they have committed to trust God no matter what.
Let's all continue to learn how to trust our faithful God. My hope, encouragement and prayer for each of us is that we'd live in such a way that we trust God for things that, when they happen, can only be attributed to Him.
Have a great fall,
Bill
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