Seeing God’s hand actively making things “half full” in one’s life is where faith begins. Without God, the glass is half empty. With God, the glass is half full. Nonetheless, it is the same glass.
God is the difference. We all face the trials and helpless moments where we cannot solve the riddle. Once we have lived long enough, we will learn we cannot beat our own mortality, much less the perils of this world, alone.
I have won many battles on my own, even without God. Yet, I will never win the war without God. The sooner I realize that, the greater my life will be on earth, and the surer the destiny of my soul.
Have you ever been in treacherous waters with others? We shove off from the bank of the land we wish to leave, as we set our eyes, longingly, on that land we wish to go. We are united in our decision. “We must modernize. We shall better ourselves. We need to go there. We cannot stay here any longer.” Pop the cork! Woo hoo!
The first few days as we forge towards the new land and goal, it is intoxicating. How smart are we! What happens next? It gets hard. As soon as we lose sight of the shore from which we left so decidedly, we start doubting that chosen shore which we cannot, yet, see. The deep blue swelling seas and treacherous storms will come. Now we are tested. Should we turn back? Should we keep going? Should we just panic into a circle of confusing questions?
In this moment, we divide into two camps:
- Camp 1: Those who will not believe in yon shore until they see it. Panic replaces faith. This camp will reduce to sporadic and fragmented intelligence. Smart thoughts guided by no faith.
- Camp 2: Those who will relentlessly paddle to yon shore until they see it, because they believe it is there, and refuse to be distracted. This camp seems guided by faith because they are.
Where was their faith, their focus? Not in God’s Word but on their troubles! Hence, “no faith” (as in, no faith that God accepts). Their “little faith” was nothing but a limited or faulty understanding of what God was doing with them!
Jesus speaks of having little faith in these four bible passages:
Matthew 6:30: “And if God cares so wonderfully for wildflowers that are here today and thrown into the fire tomorrow, he will certainly care for you. Why do you have so little faith?”
Matthew 8:26: “And Jesus said unto them, “Why are you afraid? You have so little faith!”Then he got up and rebuked the wind and waves, and suddenly there was a great calm.”
Matthew 16:8: “Jesus knew what they were saying, so he said, “You have so little faith! Why are you arguing with each other about having no bread? 9 Don’t you understand even yet? Don’t you remember the 5,000 I fed with five loaves, and the baskets of leftovers you picked up? “
Luke 12:28: “… He will certainly care for you. Why do you have so little faith?29 “And don’t be concerned about what to eat and what to drink. Don’t worry about such things.30 These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers all over the world, but your Father already knows your needs. 31 Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and he will give you everything you need.”
In business, as in our home lives, we must constantly be willing to charge forward to where God leads us. Status quo grows mold. The model of yesteryear grows ineffective. Age-old wisdoms are still relevant, yet the modern applications, thereof, must be refigured to today like riddles. Business partners change, politicians come and go, the children grow up, the parents die, and the whole dynamic changes, again and again. The old shore becomes irrelevant, or it becomes unstable, so we shove off to new land. The waters between the old shore and the new shore try men’s souls.
To get to the new land God has in store for us, we will cross treacherous seas. You can count on it. Once you lose sight of the shore from which you shoved off, it is scary. The “what ifs” set in. To turn back, no matter how comfortable, is sure demise. To keep going to a land that you cannot yet see is madness. Or is it?
Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
Hebrews 11:1
Remember that glass? The one that is either half full or half empty. Life is the glass. We are the soul living in that glass. God is the creator of all, including life, the earth and all that is holy. God delivers us from the war over our souls, through Jesus, His son. God defeated Lucifer and our sins – He won the war! In order for one to have faith in his or her endeavors here on earth, once the storms come, it will come down to belief in and faith in God. The glass is half full with God. It is empty without Him. Either way the time in that glass is finite. The only question is whether one makes room in his/her glass for God.
Want a little boost in your faith? Do we want a little more logic to help us during those high-seas moments between the comfortable yesterdays and the scary tomorrows? If God, Jesus, and The Holy Spirit foresaw the battlefield of life before it was created, and saved you and won the war, already for you, saving your soul for all eternity, then you think They might have your back on this next battle? God won the war for the eternal salvation of your soul. If you accept Him and Jesus as your savior, then all of your battles are in a half full glass.
What shall we say about such wonderful things as these? If God is for us, who can ever be against us?
Romans 8:31
In closing, waste no time as a family or as an executive team acting like a rudderless vessel. Make a plan, openly and honestly as a family/team. Make adjustments but stay on course. Do not be a faithless tumbleweed. Ask God for direction, and be willing to act fast when He speaks, and be willing to sit on a log waiting when He is quiet. Most importantly, act with great tenacity, relentlessly and with steely-eyed faith between yesterday’s bank and tomorrow’s new land. Be not distracted by the faithless. If the faithless stay around long enough and do not screw it up, they will eventually see. But do not follow the faithless, and do not suffer long their inquisitions during the intense times when we need to focus. Embrace good at every turn. Be kind, yet be fierce in pursuit of the plan.
Until next time, cheers!