A Leap of Faith

Nothing before, nothing behind:
The steps of faith fall on the seeming void,
And find the rock beneath.
- J.G. Whittier

I found this little quote in a biography on Hudson Taylor that I just finished reading, and it means so much to me right now. Faith may often involve hope and the future, but it also has to be lived out in the now. It has to be more than belief. As we're taking the step into what seems like a long, foggy chasm with no bottom in sight, the object of our faith had better be something beyond what we can see. It feels frightening at the time as we leave terra firma and step out onto that which we hope and trust will hold our weight and not send us free-falling into the pit, but when our foot touches down on the unshakable rock as we put our weight into it, there is no greater feeling of security.

Right now, we feel somewhere between the step off the cliff and landing on the rock of safety. We know that God is faithful and that He will prove Himself and His Word true, but we're having a work-out of our faith muscles in this season. God knows the many needs before us and the many people that depend on us to meet those needs, but, more importantly, we know that we are totally dependent upon the very Vine from where the provision and sustenance flows. We know and actively trust that He will be faithful to His promises.

God is really focusing me in on John 15:5 right now - I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. He is the source of all that I need, I am merely an extension of Him. He will not abandon what is part of Him, as I abide in Him, stay in Him, don't move away or disconnect when it seems to be rough going for a while.

We are hoping to get to Una Esperanza soon, God willing, and continue what God has begun in this place of hopelessness. Patsy, our on-site missionary, informed us that both Maria and Mariquita are working on a ranch with their mother, so while we are saddened that they are not with us at Una Esperanza, we pray that God would protect their family and that the seeds of faith that have been planted in the girls would grow and fully mature into a faith that would compel their mother to trust in Christ. We pray that they would return to the safety of Una Esperanza as a family in the near future, and we are remembering them in our prayers daily.

Thank you for checking in on our blog and for keeping us and Kingdom Flight in your thoughts and prayers. We truly cherish everyone who is involved with this ministry, in whatever capacity.

As a quick news item, here is a link to an article the Orange County Register published today on Kingdom Flight. We're grateful for the exposure that Lori Basheda and the paper have afforded us, and we pray that God is glorified through it somehow. We don't see ourselves as special in any way, but we know that we serve an awesome God, and we're excited to see all that He's doing, even through us.