Here/There

“God got us here; He’ll get us there.” I can’t begin to tell you how many times my wife and I have said this to each other over our marriage or begin to describe to you the truth it’s held. When situations arise, do you find yourself trusting in God or hiding because of fear? Trust can be an extremely risky thing in this world. Who do we trust, why should we trust them, and what does it require of us transactionally? William Shakespeare himself said in his play All’s Well That End’s Well, “Love all, trust a few, do wrong to none.” Trust gets taken to another level when we begin to describe it as faith.

Faith, in my own summation, can be described as turning the lights off in a room full of chairs, some in neat rows, some strowed randomly, and running full speed from one side of the room to the next with total disregard for the obstacles before you. Scary, right? Your shins can feel the pain reading this, but that is exactly what God is saying, “Do you trust me? Then have faith.” If God got you to the room in the first place, can’t we have the faith that He’ll get us to the next? If God parted the Red Sea, can’t He break your addiction? If Christ Jesus healed the sick and the blind, can’t He heal your marriage? If He rose from the dead, can’t He raise you too?

I’m reminded of when Nehemiah was commissioned by God to rebuild the city walls of Jerusalem. In a sort of rally cry (I like to imagine Nehemiah at a podium in a packed venue full of skeptics), he recalls everything the Lord had done up to that point in the Old Testament. Nehemiah reminded his people of where they had been, where they had come from, and in the end, where they were going.

The same can be seen in Romans when Paul recalls the story of Abraham and how he was justified by his faith.

The past can become an afterthought when the future seems uncertain, but we must remember. Faith is that dark room filled with obstacles, but Jesus takes your hand and says, “Let’s run. Have faith. Trust me.”