The Middle

Hebrews 11:1 is a very familiar passage of scripture.  It says simply Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.  Put another way, my hopes rest of the faith that I have in God and I am convinced already about the outcome of whatever situation I am in because He (God) has already shown me the end.  I already know that whatever God promised me will be delivered to me because if He promised it to me there is nothing that can thwart his promise.

Faith, according to Hebrews 11 involves 1. understanding WHO God is and 2. understanding His faithfulness to deliver on His Word.  Abel and Enoch understood WHO God was and therefore governed themselves accordingly.  Every person from Noah forward in the hall of faith , as Hebrews 11 is often referred to, received a promise from God that they had to hold on to until they received it.  Some of them did not receive the answer here on earth and yet they still held on.  Abraham is a great example- he did not live to see God's promise to him put into effect and yet he trusted God all of his days- even after his mix up/mess up with Hagar/Ishmael.  The promise is one thing, knowing the end is one thing- but what about the middle?  You know, the part in between the promise and the fulfillment of the promise that you know absolutely nothing about?

The Middle is the part that actually TESTS your faith!  Believing God in the initial stages of a promise is easy.  What happens when the winds pick up or the fire gets really hot?  Paul's experience on his way to Rome is a great example of this (See Acts 22-28).  God promised Paul in Acts 23:11 that He would protect him and that He was sending Paul to Rome to witness for Him.  What God did not show Paul was that he would be imprisoned (although with some freedom as the bible says), the he would be shipwrecked and caught in a major storm at sea for over two weeks AND that he would be bitten by a poisonous snake when he reached Malta.  God also left out the part about him eventually being beheaded by the very same man that he was sent to Rome to speak to...Nero Caesar.  But even in the middle of the storm, even in prison, even before angry mobs- Paul was resolute and he stood firm on what God promised and the gospel of Jesus Christ.  The fact is simple, God CAN and WILL deliver on whatever promise He makes and the Bible is replete with examples like this. 

I consider this part of my life a "middle" type situation.  There are several events happening around me simultaneously that are trying to cause me to doubt a promise that God has given me.  It's funny because every new thing that comes up, I simply smile and remember that God has already shown me the end of this situation.  I laugh when I think about the darts of the enemy thrown in an effort to dislodge me from my faith in God.  I want to encourage anyone that is in the "middle" to stand firm on God's word and let His word be enough for you.  You don't need to call anyone to validate a promise that God gave you, just remember what He said and that He's faithful!  Let your tears be a reminder to you that there will always be a middle but there is also an end.  Weeping endures for a night but joy comes in the morning.  Let the joy of the Lord be your strength when the middle gets hard to bear.  Grace and Peace be upon you.