Faith

     It seems like every child is told at one point by an adult "enjoy being a kid while you can, because it won't last forever."  And why is that?  Simple.  Because it's scary to grow older.  Black and white gives way to growing areas of gray.  While getting older, we gradually see ourselves as the ones who have to forge the path through all the entanglement that blinds us to what's ahead.  We miss the days when the responsibility was not on us, and we could simply follow in the path already forged.  But our day came when we had to pick up the lead, and forge the path that will be followed.  Our task is never easy, there are many tangible things that block our path, and we feel that we have no one to lean on anymore, that it's all on us and we just take it by faith that there will be a destination.  But as blind as we feel we are, we do have a map.  The map acts as our guide, telling us the right way to get through it all.  But the map doesn't tell us every little detail like we would want it to.  It shows the big picture, and leaves the little details to surprise us.  But we were also given all the right tools before we started on the path to overcome any and all obstacles that we face, so that even when we feel like we shall fail, we can know that we can succeed, as long as we keep trying.

     Our spiritual journey is like that too.  We are first taught by others, and so we follow down that path.  But as we mature in our faith, we must learn to take the lead in what we believe.  It can be pretty scary, because there are so many tangible obstacles that we see.  But we have to trust in our map, the Bible, and our gifts God gave us, to get us through life so that we may live and reign forever with Him.  That is the big picture, which our map spells out for us.  The only question, then, is how we are going to let the little details affect us?  Are we going to let them be a cause for calling it quits?  Are we going to let those details consume us so that we think of nothing else?  Or shall we prove that the minor details don't have any real power and that faith will overcome them?