noun
1.
confidence or trust in a person or thing: faith in another's ability.
2.
belief that is not based on proof: He had faith that the hypothesis would be substantiated by fact.
3.
4.
belief in anything, as a code of ethics, standards of merit, etc.: to be of the same faith with someone concerning honesty.
5.
a system of religious belief: the Christian faith; the Jewish faith.
Thomas, one of Jesus' disciples, doubted that Jesus really rose from the dead and insisted on seeing for himself the holes in Jesus' hands and side. The disciples even fed Him fish to prove He wasn't a ghost. Only then did Thomas say to Him, "My Lord, My God!"
In the book of John, chapter 20, verse 29, Jesus responded to Thomas saying, "Because you have seen Me, have you believed? Blessed are they who did not see, and yet believed."
Previously I shared a story of my own "unbelief" even though I am a believer. I have a simliar story that occurred after the "Cosmo" incident. There was no unbelief this time...but I still attempted to solve my problem using my own strength, literally, before turning it over to Him and admitting that I could NOT do it without His help.
The summer following Emma's Kindergarten year, one of the Mom's suggested we meet in Galveston for a "reunion." It was such a great group of kids and the majority of the Moms had worked extremely well together and made genuine friends and we did not want it to end. So we headed to Galveston for two days of fun and fellowship. I put a large cooler in the back of my Toyota Sequoia and filled it with food and drinks. I stopped on our way to Galveston and added several bags of ice. When we got to the hotel, I was able to unload the cooler even though it was heavy and I sufffer from arthritus in my hands. A hotel employee saw me pulling it and offered to roll it to the pool where we were to meet the other kindergarten families. The next day, we were to check out of the hotel and head down to the beach where we would hang out for the rest of the day. The morning of check out, I replenished the cooler with ice. I had a ground floor room and my SUV was parked close to my hotel room, so I locked my two young children in the room and rolled the cooler to the car. I could NOT lift it in the back of the Toyota. I tried getting it to my knee, hoping I could use my leg to hoist it in, but no luck. After several minutes of struggling, I looked around to see if there was anyone in the parking lot who might help me. I saw a man a little ways off approaching the hotel. He had a briefcase in one hand and a suit bag slung over his shoulder with the other. I took a few steps towards him, trying to decide if I should call out to him to help me. I hesitated a little too long and he was gone. There was no one else in the parking lot. I did not see any of the other Kindergarten moms. I was beginning to feel a little sense of panic as my kids were still in the room and I needed to get back. What was just supposed to take a few minutes was now taking a lot longer. I needed to get that cooler in the car in a hurry! It was at that moment that I prayed. I said, "God, You know exactly how much strength I need to get this cooler in the back of my car. You know I need to get it in the car. I need you to give me that strength now. In Jesus' name, Amen." There was no unbelief this time. I was convinced He would bring me help. As I still did not see anyone who could help me, I gripped the handles with my hands as best I could and tried to lift it one more time. Immediately I had it off the ground, I got my knee under it and hoisted it the rest of the way into the back of the SUV. It didn't take 2 or 3 tries...I got it in the car on my first attempt..AFTER I had prayed.
You may not think that is such a miraculous story. But if you knew me and the trouble I have with my hands, you would understand. A few of the fingers on my right hand are bent in from the arthritus. I have difficulty gripping things and cannot even make a fist anymore. As a result, I do not have the strength in my hands that I once had. Pulling the cooler out of the back had not been as difficult...but lifting a full cooler, loaded with food, drinks and ice for a day at the beach, was impossible for me until my Lord gave me the exact amount of strength I needed and had asked for. I am convinced that if I had pulled that cooler back out of the car, that I would have found myself once again unable to lift it using my strength alone.
Even as believers, I think we often let our "unbelief" sell our Lord short. We think he doesn't have time to worry about a lost stuffed animal in Walmart or getting a cooler in the back of the SUV. But I know He had His hand in both those situations. The question I ask myself now, is why do I spend so much time struggling to solve a problem using my own strength, BEFORE turning it over to Him. Why do I turn to Him as a "last resort?" I am hoping I have learned my lesson and strive to turn to Him FIRST in prayer, then continue on in faith and the knowledge that He is with me no matter how big or small the problem.
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