Taking Jesus At His Word

It's 3 a.m. and the long knot of nerves in the pit of my stomach is twisted so tight the anxiety robs me of my sleep. It was easy to say, "God I trust your plan for my future," this time last year, last month, two weeks ago.

When you don't have anything invested, there's nothing holding you back from giving it all away. It becomes a whole different ball game when you want something, or you think you've seen the best but the Lord hasn't placed it in your hands yet. That's when real faith walks through the door. The difference Paul was getting at between milk and solid food (I Cor. 3:2).

Once I realized I wasn't going back to sleep, I reached for my Bible. I'm still in John 4- "Jesus Heals the Official's Son". I never know how the Lord will speak to me through His word. Sometimes I pick up my Bible and lay it back down without absorbing anything, but praise God! He knew I needed to hear from Him tonight: vs. 49, "The royal official said, 'Sir, come down before my child dies.' Jesus replied, 'You may go. Your son will live.' The man took Jesus at His word and departed."

My stomach is in knots over a job, not even close to the reality the man in this passage was facing and yet my faith is so small. Most things in life boil down to the same question, "How much do I trust God's plan?".

So many scriptures come to mind right now, "For I know the plans I have for you declares the Lord. Plans to prosper and not harm...to give you a future and a hope.". "Do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself ". "Delight yourself in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart". "The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures,...". "Do not be anxious in anything, but in everything by prayer and petition....". "But those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength...".

The official's faith was definitely tested. He walked for a day without knowing whether his son was dead or alive. But the scriptures don't say he turned back toward Jesus, or took matters in his own hands and began seeking earthly solutions. John 4:51 "While he was still on his way, his servants met him with the news that his boy was living. When he inquired as to the time when his son got better...he realized that this was the exact time at which Jesus had said to him...".

It's time to take a lesson from the official and start taking Jesus at His word.