Something from Nothing

Many times in my life, I have looked around and thought, “I’ve got nothing!” No answers. No direction. No sense of what to do next. I am just lost.

When I have found myself in those places, my reaction has varied. Sometimes I am mad and ready to fight. Other times, I want to give up. That is not uncommon. In fact, Jesus’ best friends experienced the same range of emotions and feelings of helplessness.

One time, they were caught in a vicious storm on the Sea of Galilee and thought they were going to die. In their fear, they woke Jesus up and started screaming that they were going to drown. Jesus looked at them and said, “You of little faith, why are you so afraid?” (Matthew 8:26) and then he calmed the storm.

I wonder how many times Jesus has looked at me and thought, “Where is your faith? Why are you reacting that way? Stop being so afraid!” Too often I have let my fears determine how I will respond. I imagine every bad outcome that I can and then panic as if I have no help. Faith as an idea is easy. Living out your faith, in real-time when there is trouble all around, is much more difficult.

In a section where the writer is thinking about the Israelites who did not believe that God could give them the promised land, Hebrews 3:12 says, “See to it, brothers and sisters, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God”. The unbelieving part was not that they did not believe in God, but that they did not believe he could do anything for them. They knew he existed. They just were not convinced that he had the power to help them.

I do not want to be scared every time something bad happens. I want to believe and trust. I want to focus on and know the God who loves and provides for his people.

There will always be times when we feel like have nothing.

The good news is that God has been making something from nothing from the start.

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