Faith.
The centurion sent friends to say to Jesus: “Lord, don’t trouble yourself, for I do not deserve to have you come under my roof. That is why I did not even consider myself worthy to come to you. But say the word, and my servant will be healed. For I myself am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. I tell this one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and that one, ‘Come,’ and he comes. I say to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.”
When Jesus heard this, he was amazed at him, and turning to the crowd following him, he said, “I tell you, I have not found such great faith even in Israel.” Then the men who had been sent returned to the house and found the servant well. –
Luke 7:6-10
Faith – trusting that what God says will be done, is done. Faith is not absent from doubt. Faith sits with doubt and chooses to trust anyway. As Frederick Buechner puts it, “Faith is better understood as a verb than as a noun, as a process-than as a possession. It is on-again-off-again rather than once-and-for-all. Faith is not being sure where you’re going, but going anyway. A journey without maps.” – (Wishful Thinking)
The Centurion felt unworthy to have Jesus come to his home and heal his servant. He knew that it was possible for Jesus to heal his servant, but he didn’t want to disrupt Jesus’ important work. Say the word, and my servant will be healed. You don’t even have to come in person. Just send the message. Jesus remarked about the faith of this foreigner, “I have not found such great faith even in Israel.”
There are many obstacles to our faith. Disappointment, fear, disillusionment, unanswered prayers from our past, are only a few. God asks us to trust and have faith in spite of those situations. God gives us the gift of faith in our times of trouble. God uses other people to remind us of why we have faith at all! God reaches us in our place of uncertainty and gives us a solid foothold for our faith. Thanks be to God.
Questions for the week: Have I been nourishing my relationship with God through prayer and Scripture reading? Have I yielded to anger and spoken hurtful or damaging words? Am I praying for people I consider “enemies”?
God, we are on a journey. We do not know where it will end, and often complain about the road. We know that you are at work, and part of that work requires us to be open to you and to transformation. Forgive us when our hearts are closed to you. We do not always change, nor do we desire to go where you send us. When we harden our spirits to your transforming work, make us malleable. When the road seems long and we complain, show us a better way to be. When the mantle of your leadership is offered to us, help us to accept it. Give us ears to hear what you ask us to do, and hearts to follow. Amen.
