by Charlie Miller
Editor’s note – Charlie Miller is subbing this month for Charles Lyons who is taking a sabbatical.
When my youngest, Katrina, was only two, I put her on the bed and said, “Okay sweetheart, jump!” I smiled and held my arms out wide, waiting for her to run and leap into my arms.
She had another idea. She shook her head no and sat down on the bed. In a second or two, her lower lip pushed out, her face turned red, and tears rolled down her cheeks. I sat down beside her and hugged her. I held her and said, “You aren’t going to get hurt. I know you are scared, but if you jump, I promise I will catch you. Do you want to try again?”
She nodded yes. Carefully she bounced on to the top of the bed — cautiously looking around her. She stood on the edge with her hand worriedly placed over her mouth. Again I held my arms out and said, “Go ahead … jump!” She stood silent, still. “Come on sweetheart, you can do it — JUMP!”
She looked at me, then the floor. Her eyes darted between the two several times. Her mind spun like a top as she contemplated leaving her place of safe haven. I looked at her and said, “Katrina, I want you to jump. I promise I will catch you. Daddy’s not going to drop you or hurt you.”
What is God asking you to trust and believe him for? Maybe you have never trusted Jesus and given your life to him. Perhaps God has put a friend on your heart who does not know Jesus. God is asking you to teach a class and work with the children. God is asking you to extend yourself and mentor a young believer in their faith journey. Whatever the case may be, you stand on the edge of the bed. Your Father is calling you to leap out of your comfort zone. You want to obey Him, but you cannot get over the ominous danger. His Word and Spirit reassure your heart, “Go ahead and jump. I promise you, I will catch you. I will not let you fall. If you jump, it will be the best time of your life!”
Katrina believed me. She did it. I was so proud of her. It really wasn’t much of a jump at all. It was more of a step with a lean — ala Buzz Lightyear’s “falling with style.” She did it — she left the bed. For less than one second, she was in extreme peril. For one slender moment in time she was falling and nothing held her up. At that moment she chose to believe her father over the imminent threat to her wellbeing. She exercised faith.
Katrina’s descent was abruptly interrupted by the sudden jerk of my arms surrounding her and lifting her up. I pulled her up and to my chest. Her arms immediately lassoed my neck and her legs clamped down on my waist. She hung on for dear life and then it happened. She relaxed. She was at peace.
Peace is that moment in time when the danger seems real, but God’s presence and promise is real. Peace is not the absence of the storm — it’s Jesus in your boat. Peace is not a life free of problems, but realizing that God is in control. It is then you can relax. It is then you are at peace.
She slid out of my arms and ran off. I thought she was headed for her mother in the next room. Instead, she made a sharp left turn and climbed onto the bed. She hurried to the very edge, smiled, held out her arms, and shouted, “Again, Daddy!” This time she really jumped. In fact, we repeated this process another dozen times. Each time I would step back a little bit further until she was jumping several feet away from the bed. After a while she tried falling backwards. It was a great day.
Friend, God stands before you — with His arms wide open. He is asking you to take a great step of faith. The danger seems real — but He is real. All you must do is believe and jump. Jesus called Peter out of the boat. God commanded Moses to pick up the serpent. He told Abraham to leave everything for an undisclosed location. Go ahead and jump — God said so.
What about you? Will you jump? Will you exercise faith in your Father and go for it? Will you take a leap of faith and obey God in spite of the danger?
If you jump you will find that while you feel like you are falling you are never in any real danger. Your Father is taking care of you, and in a few moments, His omnipotent arms will secure you. You will catch your breath and fall asleep in His warm embrace. His peace will flood your life. After awhile, you will be running and jumping off of the bed — never realizing that God keeps inching back further and further so that He is able to accomplish more and more in the lives of others through you.
As a father, I really enjoyed that day. I saw my daughter overcome her fear and do things she never dreamed she could. Oh, how God longs for us to trust him, take the leap of faith, and become what we only dreamed we could be!