"Do you still have no faith?"

That day when evening came, he said to his disciples, "Let us go over to the other side." Leaving the crowd behind, they took him along, just as he was, in the boat. There were also other boats with him. A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped. Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion. The disciples woke him and said to him, "Teacher, don't you care if we drown?" He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, "Quiet! Be still!" Then the wind died down and it was completely calm. He said to his disciples, "Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?" (Mark 4:35-41)

I am frequently haunted by those words, “Do you still have no faith?” Each time I hear them, it is as if Jesus peers straight into my heart and knows the answer found there, and I must admit that sometimes I am not proud of what answer he finds. As I have been thinking about, pondering and working toward my upcoming move to Corydon, this question of faith seems to come up even more frequently. Where is it exactly that I have been putting my faith? Do I put my faith strictly in myself and my ability to deal with whatever the future holds for me? I think we all know that would be a big mistake. Do I place my faith in the Bishop and the Cabinet that they have made the right decision about my future, the future of my family and the future of my congregations? Well, at the risk of drawing the wrath of my superiors let me say that I put my trust in their decisions, but not necessarily my faith. My faith is in the one who calmed the wind and the sea, the one who healed the lame and brought sight to the blind. My faith is in the one who died on Calvary and on the third day was raised from the dead. My faith is in the one who I have tried to follow every step of my journey thus far.

As I have been trying to do my best to follow where Christ leads me, I was amazed to see how appropriate and timely this week’s lectionary scripture is to my current situation and to the situation that my churches find themselves in. If we truly have faith in the grace of Jesus Christ, then why are we afraid? I have no doubt that I have been faithful to my call so far, and I know that this next step, albeit a big one, is just one more in a very long sequence of challenging and difficult steps. 'Tis grace that brought me safe thus far, And grace will lead me home.”

Following where God leads is not an easy task. I have friends that are being led to serve in the Congo, I have friends that have just returned from the Holy Land, others that have just returned from Korea. I just returned myself in January from El Salvador. All God is asking from me now is to move 60 minutes away. Is that too much to ask? I don’t think so at all.

I think that what God is asking from me now is to show that I do indeed have faith, that I am willing to go where I am called and willing to serve where I am needed. Then “why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?" I hope that this time when Christ peers into my heart that he finds a heart that is ready and willing to go where he calls me and a mind that is excited to do the work that he has prepared for me.

Blessings