A Moment Aside ---- 20 October 2020
We tend to think of faith as a static
thing. Maybe we see it as a virtue that permits us to hold to things that we
cannot see. Maybe we see it as a banner we hold up to follow or even as “a pillar
of fire/cloud” as we read of in the book of Exodus. Faith could also be a sense
of well-being, of being chosen by God.
This photo illustrates the idea of faith
as a bridge and implies that our lives are a journey. Whether we go from “here”
to “there” or from cradle to grave, we are on a journey our whole lives long.
That journey may have led us to some very strange places, some interesting
place, and one or two boring places. Still a journey is movement and our lives –
even if we feel they are static and unmoving – remain a journey… a pilgrimage…
or maybe a wandering.
Faith, however we concieve it, is our way
of life and our “bridge” from here-and-now
to what-is-to-come. If we are aware
of our movement toward God, we can realize that this bridge leads to where God
is taking us.
We might not all believe that God has a
plan for each and every moment of our lives. Some of us may have surprised
ourselves with what we’ve done, where we’ve been, and how we’ve fared along the
way. Our lives may have been on a direct trajectory like that of a rocket ship,
while some of us have taken sharp turns, side trips, rough roads, or even
break-downs along the way. Despite all of these, faith reminds us that God has
been with us in all that. Maybe God was not always happiest with our decisions,
side trips, or sight-seeing, but all of those things did not change God’s
companionship with us. (It might have been a bit harder to see at times, but
still there and it has been our vision that was obscured.)
Maybe God does not have each and every
step of our journey plotted out. Maybe God accepts our limping and our variable
pace. What God does have planned out is the goal of the journey,
the destination. That is where the bridge leads and where the other end of the
bridge is anchored.
No matter where we are on our journey, no
matter how far we might feel we have to go, where God is taking us is in our
best interest. Yes, some of us might have to be dragged, kicking and screaming,
to the destination. But once there, the view back will be so interesting and so
enlightening. We’ll see how God has been with us every step of the way.
If we are looking for light on our
journey, we’ll find two lighted area. First, light shines on the next step of
the journey, but often no further. Second, light shines on the destination and
in that we have hope. Faith is the journey; hope is the road map; love is what
sustains us on the way.
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