Acts 11:21—The Lord’s hand was with them, and a great number of people believed and turned to the Lord.
The cliff broke away like the sloped nose of a roman gladiator. As I walked closer to the edge, his feet stopped moving. Stephen would go no closer. He pulled at my sweater intentionally as if to say, "Forget it, I’m not taking another step!" When I picked him up his arms circled me in pythonic grip. "It’s okay," I told him. "I’m not going to let you get hurt." With his gap-toothed grin and an audible sigh he relaxed in my arms. So long as I held him we could follow the ridge and marvel together at the roar of the surf and the whine of the wind. And the little girl who watched him, decided that she too could walk the trail beside the clouds.
If we could hear the stories eyes tell, the questions they ask, how wise we would become. For every day, eyes follow our movement, evaluate our behavior and reflect thoughts only God knows. What seems inconsequential in its ordinary state becomes over time a powerful treatise to whether faith is any good. How do you act in lines, when deadlines pile up, around a rude co-worker, a screaming child, when your head aches, when the bully throws you down and spits on all you treasure? Do you bite your lips and grow ill? Do you hang your head like some victory-deficient person? Are you as stable as nitroglycerine? Do you smile and reflect a peace that is surreal? Is your confidence unshakable?
When we reach the maturity to say, "Lord, my life is in Your hands to do with as You will", an amazing transformation occurs. We no longer look at the cliff and fear falling. We rest in the security that He Who made us, knows what He is doing.
If we live believing God loves us, then our faith goes beyond personal blessing, it is as good as seed in another person’s heart. Faith is. Therefore circumstances are secondary. Trials and triumphs are not what matter. Our goal is not to win over the opinions of people. At stake is not being right. We don’t have to pretend. There is no reason to quit, no need to doubt. What matters is that we have a simple child-modeled trust in our Father. A trust that blesses all who behold it.
Faith is. And in that "is", every eye upon us is brought closer to the One Who is truly awesome. "Faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see" (Hebrews 11:1). Our faith enables others to become sure that the unseen hands we trust are genuine. So live like you believe, if you say you believe.
Inspiration
