"Where Is Your Faith?"

Luke 8.25:

He said to them, ‘Where is your faith?’ They were afraid and amazed, and said to one another, ‘Who then is this, that he commands even the winds and the water, and they obey him?’

I am fortunate to have a church office that is located in a lovely, wooded former church camp in the middle of a built up village near Chicago.  I can still hear the sounds of traffic and sirens, yet I can still walk away from my desk to head to the coffee machine and view peaceful surroundings when my job becomes hectic.  I push the button for a cup of coffee and, while it fills, I take a few more steps toward the window that overlooks the wooded grounds and sometimes small stream after a good rain and, before full foliage returns for spring and summer, a view of the edge of the adjoining cemetery.  I rest my elbows on the window sill as the coffee pours into my cup, just looking out at God’s creation and am reminded that everything has a season.  I watch a playful squirrel jump from branch to branch or hop along the ground in search of food.  A bird flits by and lands on another branch to look around and take flight once more.  This is a great place to pull myself back into a peaceful mood – to regroup my mind and head back to my desk with coffee in hand to continue my tasks before me.

There are days that we sometimes wonder how we will get through what is set before us.  Times that are so busy and hectic, or full of trials…  What keeps us going?  What keeps our feet moving ahead one step at a time during the difficult times in our life?  Faith that God has something better ahead is one thing that keeps most of us afloat during difficult times.  We may not always see the “light at the end of the tunnel,” but God has promised us great things for holding tightly to our faith in Him and His Son, Jesus Christ.   Sometimes our faith may seem to elude us, yet we eventually find it again.  Where is your faith during life’s trials?  Is it your safety line that pulls you through to better days ahead?  Or have you let go and feel like you are floundering?  God is still waiting to throw you a line to safety if you have let go.

Prayer

Heavenly Father, Thank you for always being there to pull us through the hard times in life to the “bigger and better” future You have planned for us.  Thank you for continuing to love us and care for us even when we forget that You are always beside us through “thick and thin.”   Please, continue to remind us that You are with us, even in the midst of our difficult times, so that we can keep holding tightly to our faith in You to keep us afloat to the future You have for us in You.  Amen.