Just some early morning thoughts from me to you…
“Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.”
Hebrews 11:1 (NIV)
I wonder at times why I am surprised.
It seems so obvious this morning as the sun once again comes up outside my window and the soft cool breezes float through the trees below–how can we not have faith enough to believe in the unbelievable?
When we take in all of God’s creation in the world around us–how does it not become clear to us that with God, what seems unbelievable becomes believable?
The unbelievable seemed to happen again this past weekend in Jacksonville, Florida as the hearts of over 2,000 men who attended another Impact for Living Men’s Conference were penetrated and challenged to become more than they ever thought they could be. Where through session after session, speaker after speaker, moment upon moment–changes began to take place in their lives that began to move them past what has already occurred in their lives–the junk and stuff, the mistakes, the fallings, failures and wrong turns–toward the future God had in mind for each of them of truly becoming the men God created them to be. It’s the same future God has in mind for each of us–as He calls us to move forward to becoming that special person He has created us to be.
Paul’s encouragement to us in his letter to the Ephesians always seems an appropriate follow-up to me to the verse from the writer of Hebrews above. From the man who endured much for the Hope he held in his heart, he shares this as a good place to start all of the mornings of all our days…
“Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.”
Philippians 3: 13b-14 (NIV)
So as our day begins, I wonder if we have that kind of faith that believes in the unbelievable of God, even though we can’t see what is coming around the bend of all of our tomorrows. I wonder if we have that kind of God-inspired faith that causes us to press on in the face of disappointments, setbacks and heartaches. I wonder if we have that faith–that certainty in God–that causes us to continue to embrace the future He has created for us?
I wonder if we have that kind of faith that causes us to press on in the face of doubt and doubters, waning resources, tough times, believing that the vision God laid before us was really His and He will continue to bring it all about. While all He asks us to do is to believe, to press on, and at times to simply hang on to the hem of His robe for dear life as He flies by to lead us into the future He has set before us.
I don’t know what you’re facing as this day and week unfolds before you–sometimes faster than your grip can endure. Perhaps you’ve lost a job, or a family member has an illness that will affect their future, a relationship has taken a detour you never saw coming, or you just don’t seem to know what the rest of your days should look like. May I suggest that with the God who created you, you can embrace for your life the faith the writer of Hebrews called you to–being sure of what wd all that happens to try to throw us off course, all the distractions of doubt and criticism, and all the heartaches, failures and disappointments that will surely litter the path along our way.
It’s a faith that calls us every day to believe in the unbelievable.
It’s a faith that blows through our lives with the fresh winds of hope when we least expect it, reminding us again and again that the God of all creation is still in charge, has never left us, and is tapping on our shoulder reminding us that He still has much for us to do–for Him and for others.
It’s a faith that will carry us through all of our days, into the Hope of all of our tomorrows, and always with the God of all eternity.
Try it–it will turn your unbelievable to believable.
In His Name–Scott
Copyright 2012. Scott L. Whitaker. All rights reserved.
