Have you ever been caught in an experience where you felt challenged and stretched beyond your limits? Where you felt that you were totally unable to cope with the situation that confronted you or the pressures that were upon you? I have encountered a number of folk in the last week or two who were in just such a situation.

There doesn't seem to be any even-handedness in this. While some folk seem to cruise through life with hardly a ripple on the surface, others are buffeted, tossed and threatened by one storm or disaster after another. One person described this to me as "bad luck", but the Bible knows of no such thing. There is no place for "luck" in a world that God holds in His hand. Rather, when 'bad' situations overtake us, we are to look for the good purposes of a loving God that lies within them.

The Apostle Paul touches on this in 2 Corinthians 1, where he describes a situation where he and his companions were under such pressure that they "despaired even of life". He says that "Indeed, in our hearts, we felt the sentence of death." (v. 9) However, he goes on to say that "this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead." It has been my experience, and the experience of many other Christians through the centuries, that God sometimes takes us to the limits of our own ability to cope, and beyond, so that we might learn to rely on His ability.

In fact, as I have noticed as I have been reading again through the Gospel of Matthew, being stretched beyond the limits could almost be said to be a normal experience for those who would be followers of Jesus. Time and time again, situation after situation, Jesus' disciples find themselves totally out of their depth. And Jesus was constantly reprimanding them for their lack of faith. We would totally understand their terror at the prospect of drowning in the storm, or Peter's difficulty with walking on water, or their general concern about the need for food and clothing, but Jesus puts it all down to a lack of faith!

Much has been said or written about faith. Many tend to see it as some magical quality which needs to be conjured up. But Jesus saw it rather as that simple trust that is expressed by little children. On one occasion he said that if we had faith "as small as a mustard seed" (one of the smallest seeds) we could command a mountain to move. (Matthew 17:20) As someone has said "It is not great faith we need, but faith in a great God."

It is as we grow in our knowledge and understanding of God that we grow in our level of trust. The faith which Jesus looks for in us is very different from the superstition which many exhibit. Superstition inhabits the realm of feelings, fear and fantasy. Biblical faith steps out from the sure foundation of known fact. Faith goes beyond fact, but it starts from fact. That is why the historical evidence of the Gospel accounts, and especially the veracity of the death and resurrection of Jesus are so important.

However, if we are to be true disciples of Jesus, and especially if we are to be His agents, in meeting the needs of the world, we must be prepared to move beyond the limits of our perceived ability. This is seen very clearly in the story of the hungry crowd in Matthew 14:13-21. To their credit, the disciples are considerate of the physical needs of the crowd as they are gathered in a remote place without food. They do the right thing in bringing their concerns to Jesus. But they are totally nonplussed when he says to them "You give them something to eat". They know for certain that the only resources they can muster are totally inadequate for the need that confronts them. What they have to learn is the ability of Jesus to multiply their meagre resources beyond their wildest dreams.

As we look at the world around us we see, and encounter, many situations that are beyond the limits of our ability to cope. I have actually come to the view that this is "normal" for those who are seeking to follow Jesus. Sometimes we just give up in despair. Other times we cry out to God for Him to "do somethimg". But, I believe, in more situations than we imagine, Jesus' word to us is "You do it!" He has the ability to multiply what meagre resources we yield to Him. He has already given us enormous power in the Holy Spirit. The challenge is for us to step out in faith, beyond the limits that we set on ourselves, and do it!

John Davies
25 August 2002