Faith for Real

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There's something fairytale-like and idyllic, almost heaven-like, in splashing around in a creek in the mottled sunlight. We found some fossils in the rocks in the water formed in the shape of a seashell. And one side of the bank was pretty layers of rock arranged in shelves. We crisscrossed the creek several times, Aaron hopping from rock to rock because he was wearing shoes and me wading in the water. Some of the rocks were slippery with moss and the water there was smooth and unruffled, and then the water would pour over a rock ledge in a little waterfall and the water would be bumpy, the rocks below it easier to grip with my toes. The sunlight filtering down through the trees and the singing water made me want to stay and stay and stay!

There are times in your life when you are presented with situations that leave you perplexed. Your hands are tied and there is just nothing you can do. There seems no way out. You feel trapped in this situation. Alone. And when we're right in the midst of the situation, it's easy to forget who God is. It's easy to talk to other people in their situations, telling them not to limit God and that they need to put their trust and hope in God. "Have faith!" we say, and then go our merry way, scoffing within ourselves, "How could they be so frail, so faithless and faltering?" And life dishes us a share of the shocking, the unimaginable, the horrifying and unspeakable. And we find ourselves doubting, adrift in uncertainty. We forget that even though people change, God is unshakable. We forget that even though circumstances are turned on their head, God always stays right-side-up.

One such situation was dumped over my head like a bucket of cold water last night. After cogitating and ruminating and brooding and fretting and worrying, I felt helpless. Who could help? And even though I may not have thought this exact concept, this is the way I was living and thinking: Where is God? My beloved husband was quick to discern what was running through my head and reminded me of the rock-solid truths about our God. He is always in control. He never changes. God is always reliable.

And today, splashing in the water with the sun smiling down on us, it was as if God was saying, "Don't worry, I'm always here. Everything is in My hands and I know what I'm doing. You are My child." And I could rest in His everlasting arms, peaceful because God is always in control.

"But I am like a green olive tree in the house of God; 

I trust in the mercy of God forever and ever.

I will praise You forever

Because You have done it;

And in the presence of Your saints

I will wait on Your Name, for it is good."

~ Psalm 52:8-9

"Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him;

Do not fret because of him who prospers in his way,

Because of the man who brings wicked schemes to pass...

Do not fret - it only causes harm."

~ Psalm 37: 7-8

"Why are you cast down O my soul?

And why are you disquieted within me?

Hope in God;

For I shall yet praise Him,

The help of my countenance and my God."

~ Psalm 42:11

Love,
Anna