Turn to God or Further Away?
Whether as the result of sin, sorrow, or circumstances, all of us eventually come to a hope-shattering experience. In those moments, we either turn to God or choose to turn further away. But only in turning to Him do we find an unshakeable hope. What was the difficulty or disappointment that left your hope shattered or your faith shaken?
There is no hope outside the hope we have in our Lord. In Him, we have hope in this life and in the life beyond. His Power and His Providence guarantee both. The writer of Hebrews declares that this hope that we have is an anchor of the soul, a hope both sure and steadfast and one which enters within the veil. (Hebrews 6:19) If the Bible was a fairy tale, it would never tell the story of men and women who failed or experienced suffering, sorrow, and disappointment. But they did, and we do. Nevertheless, the Bible reveals how God overshadowed their journey and ours, often overruling the deepest disappointment. Faith is an unwavering hope in God in spite of our circumstances. It is a strong and settled trust in our Father’s love.
I took swimming lessons when I was five years old. My memories of those days are still as clear as the water in the pool. We started in the shallow end of the pool. At first, we just held onto the side of the pool and kicked our feet. We learned to hold our breath and put our heads under water. But what I remember most are those moments that our teacher would be standing in the water, and we would be standing on the edge of the pool. There in the shallow end of the pool, he asked us, one by one, to jump into his arms. Some of us trusted him and made that jump. Others didn’t trust him and wouldn’t jump. As the days went by, our adventures moved across the rope that divided the shallow end from the deeper part of the pool. Our routine was the same. He would be in the pool all alone. One by one, he asked us to jump into his arms. In that part of the pool, there was more apprehension. Although he could stand up in the water, it was over our heads. Fewer people jumped that time. Those who didn’t were not only afraid of the water, they didn’t trust him to catch them if they jumped. I jumped, and he caught me. Then the day came that I found myself standing on the high diving board. I was looking down into the deepest part of the pool. This time, my teacher was treading water. The water was over his head. As I stood on that diving board, he held out his arms and asked me to jump. I did, because I trusted him. I learned that he would catch me no matter how deep the water. But my trust began through steps of faith in the shallow end.
Those days have helped me understand my walk with God. There will be days when the step of faith God asks me to take will be very small. The water of difficulty before me won’t be that deep. Those who trust Him will make that step. There will be days when the waters of difficulty will be deeper and rougher—beyond the rope, or outside my comfort zone. The Lord will ask me to take another step of faith, trusting Him. Each time I do, my confidence grows in His ability to catch me and navigate the waters of difficulty. The day is coming when I will find myself on the high-diving board of life to make my final leap into His arms. If I have trusted Him to catch me all along the way, on that day, I will have faith for the deep end.
Where are you in your life journey? Is the difficulty facing your dark or deep? The hope that we have in Him is sure and strong. His outstretched arms beckon each of us to trust Him. The eternal God is a dwelling place, and underneath are the everlasting arms. Deuteronomy 33:26a
Pastor Eddie Davidson