By Lois Hewitt

In the darkness and stillness of the night, after my body has had enough sleep, my eyes open and the cogs in my brain start turning.

This morning my thoughts went to a scene in The Chosen.  The scene where a large crowd of people came to Jesus for healing, for miracles.  I watched the scene unfold, not giving it much thought other than what was on the surface.

That was a few weeks ago and a few Bible study lessons ago.  This morning I realized the significance of the scene, one in which Jesus hardly appeared. The scene showed all the people who came for a miracle healing.

Would they have believed Jesus if not for the miracles?  Obviously we have an advantage in this age of, believe or not, of having heard of Jesus. In the first century things were different but the question is still the same, would they have believed in Jesus without the miracles?

Enter faith.  Faith is the belief in things not seen.  How could those first century people have faith in something as radical as Jesus?  How does faith fit into today’s world?

In retrospect, the scene almost seemed like a circus of sorts.  Come see the amazing Healer.  See for yourself the miracles.  But isn’t faith believing without seeing?

In my life, I have asked and begged Jesus to do “tricks” to get me out of jams and get things I wanted. Proud of that, I am not.  But my knowledge of faith was that of a baby. I could not possibly understand, at that time, the true meaning of faith.

In the last few years, I have grown in my faith and I have learned so much more.  I see how easy it is to just want to see the show of it. To wish/pray for things.  But it is so much more than that.

Let’s face facts.  The story of creation is way too big for most of us to comprehend. The Old Testament accounts are not of the world we know today.  If I am honest, sometimes I wonder if it can be true, then add forgiveness of sins and eternal life and my mind is blown.

So I guess as new Christians we need a little of that “miracle show” to believe but as we grow so does our real faith.  I cannot see my sin scorecard with all my sins erased but I do believe it to be so.  I cannot imagine eternal life but I do believe it will be.

That is the faith we are called to have. Believing in things not seen.  Just as my lungs and heart work, without my specific knowledge of said work, I believe they do.  I cannot fathom the power of God, it is too big for me.  I cannot physically see Him but I know He is there and that a life is coming that I also cannot comprehend.

My faith today no longer needs the side show.  My miracles, forgiveness and eternal life, though not seen have been given to me and all believers. 

I no longer need to see the miracles to believe in the One who does them.  That is the faith we are called to live.  The faith that says I don’t understand why this happened but I know it will be for Your will. The faith that simply says “thank You” and no other request.

God answers our prayers in His way for us and our true faith in Him is our way of Honoring His gifts.