Not by Sight

I used to walk paths like this . . .

Walking into the unknown, photo credit Hannah Swift, Shimla, India

. . . . and now I walk paths like this.

This is not me but this is the track where I walk often.

Exercising muscles that haven't been used for a while is never easy. I recently started walking this route regularly again after a bit of a break for the school holidays and it's shocking how stiff I feel. 

Ten times around the track and I find I can barely get out of the car again when I get home! It's sad really . . . . . but I know if I keep at it, the muscle tone will come back. Meanwhile, I'm so grateful for friends who walk with me and keep me motivated. 

I've been exercising another neglected muscle recently too - my faith. We're praying in my salary for Thai Village and waiting on God for some needs in our house in the US. I feel the same stiffness in my spirit sometimes that I feel in my body when I walk. I'm so stilted in my faith. 

If I'm honest, there is definitely a side of me that would much rather have all my ducks in a row - to know how all our bills are going to be paid and when I'm going to get my salary. But then there's a side too that is excited to give these needs to God and see what He will do. I want to grow in my trust and dependence and it's a daily choice to walk that path in faith.

Just like exercising though, I find I need walking companions around me to help me build the muscle.

Many of my friends here in Chiang Mai are missionaries "on support" and depend on God for all their needs. I often hear stories of His timely provision - a car donated in a time of need or school fees covered or a surprise full university scholarship.  Many times it's more than they hoped for or could imagine - but they had to wait on God's timing. It's not all glamour and amazing stories of course - but my own experience and that of many friends here reminds me how generously and extravagantly God provides when we dare to depend on Him and not ourselves. 

The other group that teach me so much about faith here are the poor. For believers who have little wealth in the world's eyes, faith is just a way of life. This week, I sat on the floor of a tiny one-roomed home for three and listened as my friends at Thai Village encouraged a new worker to trust God for her family's future. It was so natural to them and inspiring (well, after they translated to me what they actually said!) Thankfully at the same time, they were also giving her a means to build that very future and all this together is what I love about Thai Village.

Manager Pii Suai discussing work assignments with new artisan Pii Miu 
Afterwards we prayed and there were tears and hugs and hope and it was beautiful!

This week, I also heard from a dear Indian friend who has already been through way more suffering than any person should in their whole life, and I told her how inspiring she was to me in her dependence on God. She said, "I won't ever forget that I am nothing without God." Maybe that's what Jesus was talking about when He said, "Blessed are the poor". That truth is etched deeply in our souls through times of suffering and dependence. 

So, here I am, surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses - yet still I falter, and wobble and squirm in the unknowns! And then I read this in "Jesus Calling" this week.

"When some basic need is lacking - time, energy, money - consider yourself blessed. Your very lack is an opportunity to latch onto Me in unashamed dependence. When you begin a day with inadequate resources, you must concentrate your efforts on the present moment. This is the place where I always await you. Awareness of your inadequacy is a rich blessing, training you to rely wholeheartedly on me."  (Sarah Young)

A timely word for me! And so I choose to exercise this faith muscle. I want spiritual fitness even more than I want physical fitness and though the laps around the track are hard some times, I know it will be worth it. Let's walk together friends - through stiffness, through resistance in our mortal bodies and with faltering steps. There is treasure to be found there . . . . and I'm pretty sure it's of greater worth than a few calories burned. 

Many thanks to Karen B for the beautiful artwork in this post (orchid.karen@gmail.com)