Mark 8:11-13
The Pharisees came and began to argue with him, asking him for a sign from heaven, to test him. And he sighed deeply in his spirit and said, "Why does this generation ask for a sign? Truly I tell you, no sign will be given to this generation." And he left them, and getting into the boat again, he went across to the other side.
The Pharisees came and began to argue with him, asking him for a sign from heaven, to test him. And he sighed deeply in his spirit and said, "Why does this generation ask for a sign? Truly I tell you, no sign will be given to this generation." And he left them, and getting into the boat again, he went across to the other side.
I can’t say that I have never looked Heavenward and asked God for a sign of some sort. Ironically enough, I can put my finger on a few instances in my life when I feel like God did send me a very distinct “sign.” Of course the real gold in this passage lies in the fact that God does send us signs that He is working in our lives ALL of the time. The trick is that we have to look for them. So many things have happened in my life (especially these past couple of years) where I look back and think how there is no way I could have worked that out on my own….God surely had His hand in the mix. In this passage Jesus doesn’t even stand around and patiently explain to the Pharisees why he will not give a sign. He simply sighs and then peaces out. To me this shows how important the virtue (?) of faith is in our lives. God isn’t going to send us signs or explain why not he just expects us to have faith. Period.
ReplyDeleteBeing in a long distance relationship for a long period of time with a person who you have never been in the same place with and trying to plan a future together is proving to be a MASSIVE test of faith. To do all of this and not become so frightened by the unknowns is something I could not do without the grace of God. This is when I must tap into the knowledge I hold in my heart of all of the instances thus far where I took a leap of faith and it worked out. That gives me the strength to continue walking forward even when things don’t make sense. I constantly feel like I have severe nearsightedness where all of the variables in front of me are crystal clear and make my heart sing with joy but the future ahead of me/us is something I literally cannot even picture. As someone who likes to plan ahead and be prepared this is incredibly difficult to manage and in the past it has caused me to drag my heels or try to turn around but the quality of the picture that I hold right before my eyes indicates to me that this may be the best “sign” God could possibly send me about my future and that I have no choice but to trust Him.
...it's funny to me too that when friends come to me for advice, any wisdom that I am able to give them seems to originate from situations in my life that at the time were the most challenging and really a test of my faith. It's interesting to think about how God uses those "struggles" in our lives to eventually allow us to minister to others. I can only hope that if we make through this period of time then God will use me to pass on the wisdom I have gained about faith in Him to others who may need it. After all, He is at the center of the two of us and to Him be the glory!
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