Faith Is What Makes Real…
September 29, 2013 Leave a comment
“Faith is what makes real the things we hope for. It is proof of what we cannot see.” Hebrews 11:1 ERV
I was in my home office just reading a book after doing my 2-mile run. The garage door opened (which was unusual) since everyone was out. I looked outside and saw my daughter who just arrived from San Antonio (90miles away from us, she is currently attending college at UTSA, this is her third year). She knocked at the door and I opened it and the first words that came out from her mouth was “dad, I had an accident on my way here”. I looked at her and gave her a hug for a few minutes. I noticed right away that she was so terrified by what happened and saw a need that she needed to diffuse her emotion. So we went to her truck at the driveway, a black 2009 Chevy Colorado V8, and asked her to tell me the story. The exit to Austin right at I35 by Loop 1604 was closed and diverted and was barricaded with large safety cones, she did not have enough time to react because of her speed and the tactical driving environment that she crashed to one of the cones. She showed me the badly scratched front left side fender. From the appearance of the impact of the car, I know it was terrible. The exit to Austin from Loop1604 is very tricky to maneuver since it is a 2-lane road in a Y with the exit to the southbound lanes. I know that it was a hard decision to make when you are there at the moment of impact since the road is a little bit curved and you are driving on a very high overhead bridge. A fatal mistake, one can end up 100 feet down below.
Fast forward…
She kept talking and relating her incident as her face lightened up. I told her not to worry about the damage of the car since I can DIY the scratch damage – I have all the tools needed to fix it. I told her that what’s important is she survived the accident without any physical damage. I told her that I am impressed how she managed to regain control of the situation. It could have been a terrible accident knowing the fact that the event happened in a flyover bridge suspended high above the skies.
Fast forward…
At the end of the day after washing the car, personally buffing the paint job and polishing, the accident never left any mark. The black pickup truck looks new again and the cost was $0.00. I repaired it myself.
After all her hassles and worries, we realized that nothing really happened. Yes, there was an accident but she made it through.
The reason why I’m taking my time to relate to you her story is because it was a story of my faith again. Last year, we drove 90 miles in the middle of the night because she could not move any parts of her body that she has to be brought to the hospital by an ambulance. It turned out that it was just a tight muscle in her back that paralyzed her (temporarily)
I get bad news such as these ones almost every month or year. Remember I posted here once that my wife recently lost her job in 17 years after taking a vacation. But then within a week, she found a very fulfilling job as an OB office manager. That too was bad news at first but we breakthrough. A few months ago, my 80 years old mother had a car accident that placed her in bed for months due to the impact of the crash but in the following month of physical therapy she slowly recovered. Another bad one was my heart attack on December 22, 2008 that forever changed my life and that too was a game changer but then it drives me more to train for a 100mile bike ride and encourage me to swim more and run more. All those incidents were out of my control and brought me worries at some point of time but in the end I was triumphant.
Long time ago, I started believing that somehow God is watching me and my family. The Bible says, “I will never leave you nor forsake you”. I don’t have a lot of explanation why I believe what I believed but when things (special incidents) like these happens in my life, what else can I do except appreciate what the good Lord has done for me. I cannot deny that every situation that I mentioned could have a different outcome. My daughter’s small road accident could have turned into a big one – but it did not. When I was praying for my mom for recovery, one day I had a dream that we were walking together without her wheelchair and in a few months, it became a reality.
Faith is really hard to explain. I don’t have the theological knowledge and background to convince you about it. I don’t have the eloquent words of a great preacher to convince you that faith works.
The same concept with the reality of God. How can I say that God is real. How can I say to you to step into the boat of faith. How can I say that there are angels all around you protecting you wherever you go. How can I say that God provides protection to you and your family and your properties and possessions and your precious investments in life. How can I convince you that God can provide you with good health. How can I say that God can give you wisdom and knowledge to improve your quality of life. How can i tell you that God can provide for your needs.
Faith is a mystery. Sometimes it can be a form of “make believe” and at times, it is. You start imagining that somehow things can be different because you want it different or you want it to go away and when you thought that your wishes are all forgotten, you realized that the things you hoped for, the things you wished for – were granted.
How can you ‘not believe’?
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