5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart,
And lean not on your own understanding;
6 In all your ways acknowledge Him,
And He shall direct your paths.
The Lord instructs us to totally depend on Him - and sometimes that may involve coming out of our comfort zone and trusting Him, even in unusual circumstances or actions. When He calls us to take on important tasks for the sake of the kingdom of God, He will give us creative ideas in order to fulfill those assignments. And, He calls us to approach what He has called us to do with a selfless attitude, determined to bring glory to Him. He will give us the strength and resources that are necessary in order to complete what He has called - yeah, it may take what we perceive as a leap of faith, but we can know that He goes with us.
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1 He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High
Shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.
2 I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress;
My God, in Him I will trust.”
We live in a nation that is built on a firm foundation of faith and faithfulness. Those who established this nation did so because of a deep belief in the principles of freedom and many of them were motivated by the Scriptures, a deep belief in God, our Creator. They took a dramatic step out in faith, risking their own lives, but they really believed in their hearts that it was worth it. And, the American ideals have continued to be upheld by our men and women in uniform, our troops who have continued to fight for the cause of freedom. So, on Independence Day, we recognize our dependence on Almighty God, who has been a source of strength and guidance throughout the years. And, even though there are many in our nation who do not acknowledge His ways, we can never lose hope in our country and be prompted to pray for our nation, that we would embrace afresh and anew those time-honored principles that have sustained us.
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In Ephesians 2, we see a passage that enlightens us to the operation of faith, as we recognize that we are saved by faith and we are sustained by faith in the Lord:
8 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God,
9 not of works, lest anyone should boast.
10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.
Two years ago, two ladies from Canada decided they wanted to "do something important - something that matters." And, that desire culminated on Monday as 44-year-old Dany Dias and 59-year-old Janine Jalbert got on a plane near Ottawa and climbed 12,000 feet, where the women jumped in tandem with instructors from a local skydiving firm.
They decided to use their jump to promote the purchase of bicycles for Asian pastors through Gospel for Asia. MyGFA.org is a new section of the Gospel for Asia website where anyone can promote a unique GFA ministry support effort.
8 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God,
9 not of works, lest anyone should boast.
10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.
Two years ago, two ladies from Canada decided they wanted to "do something important - something that matters." And, that desire culminated on Monday as 44-year-old Dany Dias and 59-year-old Janine Jalbert got on a plane near Ottawa and climbed 12,000 feet, where the women jumped in tandem with instructors from a local skydiving firm.
They decided to use their jump to promote the purchase of bicycles for Asian pastors through Gospel for Asia. MyGFA.org is a new section of the Gospel for Asia website where anyone can promote a unique GFA ministry support effort.
K. P. Yohannan, Gospel for Asia founder and president, is quoted as saying that, "We are very thankful for the creative and selfless efforts of Dany and Janine...Bicycles help pastors go farther faster, reaching more people with the love of Christ." The original goal of funding one bicycle quickly grew when their "Leap of Faith" sparked wider attention on the MyGFA website. By the time they jumped Monday morning, pledges had already funded more than 73 bicycles to the tune of $8,000, and they anticipate receiving more donations to reach their goal of 100 bicycles.
Dany related that, "About one minute before the jump, we took a moment to reflect on our purpose...We visualized 100 missionary pastors using bikes throughout their lifespan. The consequences of our jump will have more eternal significance than we can even imagine through the ministry of pastors reaching many South Asian villages with the gospel."
The two ladies, who are mothers and teachers, took a 50-second, 7,000-foot free-fall at approximately 125 miles per hour before feeling the jerk of the parachutes that reassured them their "Leap of Faith" was destined for success. They touched down near the Ottawa-Gatineau airport less than six minutes later.
Brother K.P.'s quote highlights two components of a successful faith walk, or leap. He said that the efforts of the two ladies were creative and selfless. The ladies themselves highlighted another - they were determined to do something that mattered, something important.
I do believe that you will have instances where God will call us out of our comfort zone, something requiring a leap of faith, if you will. Something out of the ordinary. In the Christian life, you don't act in a manner that appears to be reckless just for the sake of doing something out of the box. There has to be some gravity, a kingdom purpose...something of eternal value. And, God will give us creative ways to fulfill the task - He is the God of creativity, and will stimulate within our minds ideas that are compelling. When we're convinced of the call, then we lay aside self and confront fear so that we can appropriate God's strength to do what He has ordained. As it has been said, what God appoints, He anoints.
Finally, in addition to having an important assignment from God and approaching it in a creative way, we make it our aim to trust God completely, recognizing that He will provide His supernatural resources in order to fulfill the task at hand. It may not be "leaping" out of a plane, freefalling at over 100 miles per hour. But, it could be something equally as challenging for you - something unusual that requires a trust beyond yourself. Periodically, it will be something grand, but practically, God wants us to trust Him even in the small stuff everyday - enjoying the walk by faith and seeing an enhanced relationship with Christ and a excellent result of our faith in Him.
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