Stepping out in faith

My legs lift off from the ground as the ski-lift carries me up a steep mountain slope. Will I really take off at a high speed down this steep snow-covered mountain side in just a few minutes?

I look down at my skis which are now several meters above the ground. I have avoided doing this for a long time. I always came up with an excuse to not be along when my friends were going to ski on the alpine slope.

At the top of the mountain I turn to look at my friends who are now getting ready to take off down the steepest slope of the ski area. “Come on!” they say when they notice that I am hesitating. I am tempted to go back. “This slope is way too steep. I do not think I can make it. I am not a good enough skier,” I answer, and notice that my legs are shaking.

The Word needs to be mixed with faith

I have also experienced the same type of powerlessness in my life and wondered, “Why do I get so little out of what I read in the Bible? Why is there so little growth in my life, even though I am a Christian?”

In Hebrews 4:2 it is written, “For indeed the gospel was preached to us as well as to them; but the word which they heard did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in those who heard it.”

Is this good news also for me? I don’t know if I can manage to live according to God’s Word in the same way I see others do.

For me it seems impossible to let go of controlling things in my life; I who have my own plans and opinions about everything. For example, my future is something I want to control, including planning for my education, work, income, marriage and family. How can I be sure that God exists and that He will meet my needs if I do His will?

Faith is an action

“It is not a matter of what you can or can’t do, Karen. It is a matter of being brave and daring to take off down the slope even if you don’t know exactly what is ahead,” says one of my friends, who is soon hurtling down the slope at a high speed.

Typical. Here I am, left alone again. How long am I going to just stand there as a spectator and observe others’ faith?

“Jesus said to him, ‘Thomas, because you have seen Me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.’” John 20: 29.

“If you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes.” Mark 9:23.

Faith requires me to take action. I must choose to believe and take the leap into a wholehearted life of doing God’s will and believing that God will take care of me if I do so. This requires me to give up the control I want over my life, but have I ever tried it?

Believing and doing God's Word

My friends are right. How can I say that I can’t do it if I have not even tried? I straighten my hat, grip my ski poles and take off. Now I am on my way down the hill, with my heart pounding. I do not know what is ahead of me but that does not matter. I am headed down the mountain slope! And I will also believe God’s Word and do it.

The real fun begins. In faith I give everything to God to do His will. In faith I relinquish my plans for the future and all the anxiety that follows along with it, knowing that He cares for me. This gives me heavenly rest, joy, and peace.

“Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life…” Psalm 23:6.

If only I had realized how fun it is to ski, I would have started long ago!