THE UNSHAKEABLE FAITH
- MKG
- Apr 6, 2016
- 5 min read
Happy Wednesday! The bible is full of faith-filled stories. Stories where someone’s faith was called to stand up in moments where the world was calling it to fall down. I think faith-defying stories are absolutely wonderful because they are so easy to connect to. When we read through someone’s story of faith, we are able to draw connections to our own faith-filled stories that are still in the making and develop our faith from it! It is amazing to see where their faith takes them and what God creates as the outcome. Out of the many bible characters, Noah’s story specifically stood out to me, mostly because I relate to his journey with faith. I am able to draw many connections and grow my own faith through his story.
What faith-filled man Noah was! Noah was obedient and patient with the Lord for longer than we ever are. The Lord saw that the earth He created had become corrupt. He decided to wipe the human race and destroy every living thing. But, the Lord saw that Noah was a righteous man, the only blameless person living at the time, so the Lord asked Noah to build an ark and promised to confirm His covenant with him. The Lord gave the earth one last chance, 120 years, and it was during that time that Noah obeyed and did what the Lord asked of him. “So Noah did everything exactly as God had commanded him.”(Genesis 6:22) He stepped forward in obedience and followed through faithfully. How would you feel in Noah's shoes? For me, I imagine God saying "Look, I am about to wipe the entire Earth of all living things, so I need you to build a boat about the size of two football fields, and gather two of every living thing onto it. You and your family can come too, though, don't worry. I will confirm my covenant with you!" That would definitely be overwhelming. Noah, though, built that ark. He was motivated by God's promises. And not only did Noah demonstrate great obedience, but also great patience. Once the boat was built, and the lands were flooded, they were on the boat for 40 days and 40 nights. After 40 days and 40 nights of flooding, Noah noticed that the waters were going down, but he did not just step off that ark! Genesis 8:6-15 reads... "After another forty days, Noah opened the window he had made in the boat and released a raven. The bird flew back and fourth until the floodwaters on the earth had dried up. He also released a dove to see if the water had receded and it could find dry ground. So it returned to the boat, and Noah held out his hand and drew the dove back in. After waiting another seven days, he released the dove again. This time the dove returned to him in the evening with a fresh olive in its beak. Then Noah knew that the floodwaters were almost gone. He waited another seven days, and released the dove again. This time it did not come back. Noah was now 601. On the first day of the new year, ten and a half months after the flood began, the flood waters had almost dried up. Noah lifted back the covering off of the boat and saw that the surface of the ground was drying. Two more months went by and at last the earth was dry! Then God said to Noah, Leave the boat, all of you!" Do you see how easily it would have been to trust his own judgment and leave the boat on his own? Instead, he waited for God's timing. He remained obedient and patient, he remained faithful! And, because Noah listened to God until the end, God fulfilled His promise to him. "I will never again curse the ground because of the human race, even though everything they think or imagine is bent towards evil from childhood. I will never again destroy all living things." (Genesis 8:21) and later on... "I have placed my rainbow in the cloud. It is the sign of my covenant with you and all things on this Earth." (Genesis 9:12). I have learned a lot about faith through Noah. Noah chose to follow the Lord, so the Lord followed through. This is exactly why we should have full faith in the Lord and in His timing! We should strive to live faithfully and be obedient like Noah. We should be motivated by God’s promises not motivated by the world. Noah was obedient to the Lord for during the 120 years God used as the earth’s “last chance”. He sets the faith bar high, and demonstrates what our entire lifetime should be like. The whole story puts the importance of living faithfully in perspective. He waited for God’s timing, not his own, and that is what life is all about, having faith that God’s timing is the right timing, and having faith through life’s floodwaters. I don’t think I could have waited to get off of that boat, let alone build an entire ark! But I guess that is a true test of faith, and that is what will happen to you. Your faith will be tested, and you will be tempted to turn and run in the opposite direction of where God is asking you to go. As you experience life, you may turn a corner that leads you to deciding between two paths. And in this moment, I am asking you to think like Noah. Choose the path that God is calling you to walk on. Open the door to an unknown adventure. It is going to seem scary, and what lies ahead of you is going to seem so big and so overwhelming, but remember God isn’t leading you to failure. He is not going to call you somewhere only to become lost in it. He is there, He is present, and He is ready to walk along side of you. Take a step in your unshakable faith, then another, and another. It just takes one step of faith to begin a beautiful walk with Christ. Let your faith be shaken, but don’t let it tumble down, instead let your faith walk! You will be tested, you will be called to things bigger than you are, but HE is bigger than it all. 120 years constructing a boat, and another year living on it, is a huge test of faith, but Noah passed. Noah let his faith walk. He had a choice to make; be pulled into the floodwaters or build an ark. As easy as it would have been to wash away with the water, he picked up his hammer and built the blueprints God handed him. He built the ark. God is going to hand you many sets of blueprints. He is going to ask you to fulfill something for His kingdom and the only requirement you will need is that unshakable faith. He doesn’t require a resume, a background check, or an interview, he just asks that you walk beside Him in faith, trusting that you can fulfill what He has handed you. Our faith will be tested, we will be called to action, are you going to let the floodwaters wipe you away, or will you build the ark?
Have a happy Wednesday!!
MKG
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