Just a little bit of Faith!

This November I will be leading another tour to visit all the sights in the Holy Land. I always enjoy leading such a great adventure and seeing God’s Word come alive in people’s lives. One of my favorite places to go is the boat ride on the Sea of Galilee. I seem to always think about that time Jesus came to His disciples walking on the water, and Peter called out to the Lord to walk on the water. Jesus told Peter, “Come!” At that point Peter had a decision to make about his faith in the Lord. He had to step out of the boat or sit down in the boat depending on his faith.

You know it is easy for us to say that we believe the Lord and that we put our faith in Him, but it is another thing to step out of the boat and walk on water when He tells us to “Come.” In other words, there are times we know in our heart God has called us to do something and go outside our comfort zone, but to do so requires active faith. It takes faith to go on that mission trip, go to the Holy Land on a tour, teach that class, help in VBS, go and meet and our new neighbors, invite a friend to church, or to be honest about issues in our lives.

Let me give you an example of what our faith in God often looks like. It was summer in the rural Mississippi Delta and a massive drought threatened the crop in the region around a small Delta farming town. On a hot and dry Sunday, the local pastor told his congregation, “There isn’t anything that will save us except to pray for rain. Go home, pray, believe and come back next Sunday ready to thank God for sending rain.” The people did as they were asked and returned to church the following Sunday. They were buzzing, recounting and sharing with excitement at what the pastor had said the previous Sunday. But as soon as the pastor saw them, he was upset because of their indifference, disobedience, prayerlessness and faithlessness. The people did their best to understand why the pastor was upset. The pastor said to them, “We can’t worship today. You do not yet believe God or that He is in control!” One of the deacons rose and said, “But we did as you asked. We all prayed for rain, and we do believe God will send rain.” “Believe?” the pastor replied, “If you really believe God will send rain, then tell me one thing…where are your umbrellas?”

This issue is not that we need more faith in God. The issue is that we need to take what faith we do have and begin to exercise it, use it, and put it into practice. When you do it will be amazing to see how great it is to answer Jesus’ call to “come” and walk on the water with Him!