Dear
Friends,
I
have many friends that I have accumulated inside my four by five-foot wooden
file cabinet. Constructed over 40 years ago by a member of my church in
Greenville, Pa., this cabinet is my sermon treasure chest, for inside are
hidden thousands of 3 by 5 cards containing stories, quotes, and teachings by
some of the most significant teachers in the world. There is a lot of wisdom
accumulated and neatly lodged within those drawers. These “filing friends” of
mine provide me access to large amounts of information that I might otherwise
have forgotten.
Some
use computers to store knowledge and relevant information, and I am learning to
do this as well, but for me, still nothing beats the hands-on experience of
pulling out a story or two that is neatly hidden within the recesses of
those hand-crafted wooden drawers.
As
I write this morning, I am indebted to the late Chuck Smith for one of those
stories tucked away within those drawers.
He
tells how many years ago he heard of a fellow who ran out of fuel in the middle
of a blizzard and needed to ask a neighbor for some oil. “The river that
separated his house from his neighbor’s was frozen over, so he got down on his
hands and knees and reached out as far as he could on the ice, rapping with his
knuckles to determine the ice’s thickness. In this way he inched his way across
the river, reaching out and tapping. Soon his knuckles were bloody. Just about
the time he reached the far bank of the river, he heard a rumbling behind
him-seeing a team of horses thundering across the river.” Why Grace Changes
Everything, Chuck Smith p. 60
Now
I can’t vouch for the truthfulness of the story, but it does illustrate
an important lesson for all of us to learn.
Some
of us are like that fellow and are prone to say, “I believe in the promises of
God,” yet like that “ice tapper” we keep knocking to see if those promises can
hold us up. I know the bible says God can meet my needs, but I am not
quite sure if He can meet each and every one of my needs. I
hope I can depend on His Promises and that they are secure and dependable and
that they “will hold up,” but my faith is tentative and my belief needs some
reassurance.
Unlike
others who boldly launch out trusting in God’s faithfulness in keeping all of
His promises, you may be an “ice tapper” carefully inching your way across
the ice, while hoping the ice is secure enough to keep you from falling
through. But as one of His children, you can boldly thunder cross that ice
covered river like that herd of horses, knowing that the promises of God are
sure and certain.
Just
as God spoke to Joshua, God speaks to us "ice tappers” today and asks,
“Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous; Do not be afraid; do
not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go”(
Joshua 1:9).
Isn't
it
good to know that all of “the promises of God in Him are Yes and Amen” to us (
(2 Corinthians 1:30)?
His
promises are true and trustworthy, and His strength is sufficient to keep you
from falling, so don’t be an “ice tapper when you can be like that thundering herd.
Yours
in faith and friendship,
Tom
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