Faith Revealed

 

Photo by Tuxyso 2013

More than a decade ago, as my husband and I set off to Las Vegas to celebrate our 25^th wedding anniversary, we were excited yet a little apprehensive. We had been invited to perform a Theatre Arts solo exhibition at a ballroom dance celebration, and we were planning to dance our Christian ministry piece, “Transformed,” which uses the imagery of a caterpillar becoming a butterfly as a metaphor for salvation to eternal life (Romans 12:2). In our dance ministry, we often perform to largely unsaved audiences in secular settings. Yet we had never performed at the ballroom of a Las Vegas casino, so we prayed especially fervently that our message would be well received.

Added to that was the usual struggle of trying to tie up loose ends before we left home for a week, praying that our businesses would run smoothly and especially that our loved ones would be healthy and safe. Our son was suffering with a bad cold that kept him out of work for a few days and prevented us from getting together before we left. My husband’s mother, over 90 years old, had many chronic medical conditions that had caused her to be in and out of the hospital.

As our anniversary was in January, we were in the peak of snow and ice storms and bad weather, and numerous flights had been cancelled or delayed within days before our scheduled departure. It even crossed my mind that we might not make it to Vegas in time for our performance!

But as we left Tampa in unusually brisk 30 degree weather, we were relieved to be dressed in our long coats and even more blessed to have safe, on-time flights and arrival, so our fears were unfounded (1 John 4:18). Although the weather in Las Vegas had been chilly the week before, we were blessed with mild, sunny weather for most of our stay.

The gentleman who had invited us to perform, whom we had only met on one occasion several years before, could not have been a more gracious host, treating us to many meals and driving us around to see many sights that would not have been possible without a car.

We saw David Copperfield’s show and were astounded by one illusion in which he blindfolded a woman from the audience and had her wander under a canopy of 100 ribbons, each tied to a different word provided by 100 other audience members. Another audience member started and stopped a recording of music whenever she wanted to, and when she stopped, the blindfolded woman stopped and reached up with her hand to grab the nearest word. Of all the words (some proper names, some common objects, and some emotions) she could have selected, she chose the word “FAITH!”

I know that magic tricks have a logical explanation and are not miracles or evidence of supernatural power. Yet I was encouraged by this gentle reminder, regardless of the setting, that all we need is to have faith (Matthew 17:20; 21:21), trusting and obeying God whether or not we see His hand at work. But David Copperfield’s illusion had just begun, and he asked the audience to raise our hands high in the air. As we had entered the theatre, we had been given white paper bracelets printed in black with “David Copperfield.” But now as we raised our hands high, black light shone on our bracelets to reveal the word “FAITH” appearing in fluorescent letters on each outstretched wrist!

Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen (Hebrews 11:1), and without faith it is impossible to please Him (Hebrews 11:6). But this got me thinking that every now and then, perhaps more often than we even notice, God gives us little glimpses of faith revealed (Romans 1:17; Galatians 3:23). We do not need signs (Matthew 16:4) to know that God loves us and is working all things together for our good (Romans 8:28). Still, I believe that He paints loving pictures to encourage and calm us, just as a parent might tuck a thoughtful note in their child’s lunch box to remind them how much they are loved.

Praise God for His faithfulness (Deuteronomy 7:9; Psalm 89:8; Isaiah 25:1; 1 Corinthians 1:9; 10:13)! This was manifest to us when all aspects of our performance came together beautifully, despite jet lag, lack of recent rehearsal, and what I thought might be a stomach flu and migraine I experienced that morning. We danced to a full house and very appreciative audience, and God allowed us to testify to His goodness and power of salvation, not only through our dance but verbally as well. Our prayer is that hearts were softened to Him as seed was planted (Matthew 13:3-32).

We had many exciting outings planned for the remainder of our trip, including seeing several Cirque de Soleil shows and walking around the magnificently decorated hotel lobbies. It is almost like walking around the world, as you can see replicas of the Eiffel Tower, Empire State Building, Venetian canals, and the Coliseum all in the same day! But lest you think otherwise, we do not drink, smoke or gamble, and I joked that our stay may have set a record for the longest vacation in Las Vegas without a penny spent in a casino!

Our faith would be tested yet again, as one morning as we were traveling to see the Hoover Dam, Richard got a phone call from his sister. His mother had just been readmitted to the hospital for low blood sugar and pneumonia, but his sister reassured us that she would handle things and that we should not cut our trip short.

Naturally we were concerned, but as I gazed out the window at the blue, cloudless sky, I was blessed to see a perfect, white cross, perhaps left by two intersecting jet trails. Yet there was no fading off of the lines at their ends, and the arms of the cross were in exact proportion and right angled to the upright beam. Without Christ’s finished work on the cross to pay for our sins, and His resurrection to eternal life, which conquered the curse of sin and death, there would be no physical or spiritual healing (John 11:25-26; Romans 3:25; 1 John 2:2; 4:10). 

He is the Great Physician, and we can trust Him to rid our bodies of the curse of sin (Psalm 147:3), whether through His design for recuperation and disease-fighting He has programmed into us (Psalm 139:14; Hosea 6:1), or through taking us to Himself where we feel no pain, sickness, or suffering (Isaiah 25:8; Revelation 7:17; 21:4).

The third reminder of faith revealed was at the Grand Canyon, at Eagle Point where the rock formation resembles the outstretched wings of a giant eagle. This of course brought to mind Isaiah 40:31, which has always been a special verse for us in our dance ministry: But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.

As we left this breathtaking view I was surprised to see a small rainbow from the bus window. These always remind me of God’s faithfulness to keep His promises (Genesis 9:12-17), and yet this one was extraordinary, not for its size or beauty, but because it was there at all! We were told it hadn’t rained for weeks; there were no clouds in the sky; and typically it only rains briefly on 10 days out of the year in Las Vegas, for a total annual rainfall of less than 2 inches. Truly a dry and thirsty land (Psalm 63:1), thirsty not only for rain but for the Living Water of Jesus Christ (Song of Solomon 4:15; John 4:10-11; Revelation 7:17), and yet God gave us a rainbow!

On the last day of our vacation, we were in fact treated to a 5-minute rain shower, followed by one of the largest, most brilliant rainbows I have ever seen, particularly resplendent as it stretched out over the blue and purple mountains outside the city. As we admired it, we reflected on God’s grace in arranging all details of our journey to make it a much-needed time of refreshing and renewal of our vows to one another, to our ministries, and to Him.

He saw us safely home to Tampa, and thankfully we traveled not on the day of, but on the day immediately following, massive delays and cancellations due to severe weather in Atlanta, and our flights were safe and only 30 minutes late. Richard’s mother was stable, and we were able to spend quality time with her in her last days, as He ultimately brought her safely home to Himself shortly thereafter, on Valentine’s Day. Once again a beautiful reminder of His perfect love, so great that He gave His only Son so that whosoever trusts in Him will never die, but will enjoy eternal life! (John 3:16)

 
Richard’s mother was saved very late in life, and it was our prayer that her memorial service would lead others to know Him. May we all continue to witness to and pray for those who do not yet know Christ, no matter how old or set in their ways, as nothing is impossible for Him!  (Matthew 19:26) May we not grow weary of doing His work, for if we persist, we will see the harvest in His perfect timing! (Galatians 6:9)

© 2014 Laurie Collett

Edited and reposted from the archives

See What God Can Do!

 

Photo by Marwan Mohamad 2016

With so many friends undergoing extraordinary trials, I thought it would be fitting to repost this, which I wrote during a trial that changed our lives yet strengthened our faith and reassured us of God's faithfulness. May it be a blessing and encouragement to those who read it. Our trial is not over, but we are constantly reminded that Christ will never leave nor forsake us (Hebrews 13:5), and that He is working all things together for our good and His ultimate glory (Romans 8:28).

 

Recently my husband and I had some unsettling news that struck us like a bolt of lightning and has been hanging over us like a heavy cloud ever since.

No one knows what tomorrow may bring, and we are not even promised tomorrow (James 4:14). But as born-again Christians (John 3:3-8) who have trusted in the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ (1 Corinthians 15:1-4) as the only Way (John 14:6) to Heaven, we do know that with God, all things are possible (Matthew 19:26), and without Him, we can do nothing (John 15:5).

It is tempting to try to take control, using our flesh to bring about a solution, rather than yielding to God’s perfect will, love, knowledge and power (Isaiah 26:4). Yet His grace is sufficient, and His strength is made perfect in our weakness (2 Corinthians 12:9). We must leave our burdens at the foot of His cross, for those who wait on the Lord, and His perfect timing and resolution, will have renewed strength and rise up with wings as of eagles (Isaiah 40:31).

Looking back on trials we have gone through before, it is reassuring to see how God always is faithful (1 Corinthians 1:9; 10:13), always protects and provides for us (Matthew 6:25-34), and always gives us what we need, even if it is not always what we think we want (Matthew 6:8). Not only in our own lives, but in those of our brothers and sisters in Christ, and in countless Bible examples, we can see His hand at work (Isaiah 41:10).

Sometimes all we need to have the peace that passes all understanding (Philippians 4:7) is a little reminder, like a love note or unexpected blessing as a token of our Bridegroom’s constant, unfailing love (Jeremiah 33:11). So when we first learned of this trial, part of my silent prayer to our Father was that He would show me a rainbow as a symbol of His protection and provision (Genesis 9:13-16).

We live in Florida, and it is summer, when showers often pierce sunny skies, so this is not an unreasonable request. It is hardly of the order of magnitude of Gideon asking for his fleece to be bone dry in the midst of soggy ground (Judges 6:36-39), or of Elijah pouring buckets of rain on the altar and asking God to ignite it with fire from Heaven (1 Kings 18). And I know that I can be sure of God’s love without needing a sign (Matthew 16:4), for we already know of the life-changing sign of the empty tomb!

Still, I longed for this reassurance. A full month went by, with no rainbow, even though we had been outside often as we had started a daily brisk walking program. Finally, last week while walking the beach at sunset as storm clouds were brewing overhead, I happened to look up. There was the smallest, barest sliver of rainbow light peeking through the dark cloud cover!

I showed it to my husband and shared with him that I had prayed for this sign of God’s promises, and we thanked God together for showing it to us. But God always answers prayer exceeding abundantly (Ephesians 3:20) beyond what we could ever think or imagine!

The next morning, we both awoke an hour before we had planned to get out of bed. So we stumbled downstairs to get dressed for our daily brisk walk before it rained or got too hot. I was in the next room when I heard my husband yelling my name to come right away, followed by the blaring of the house alarm! In his excitement to open the sliding doors facing the beach, he had forgotten to shut it off!

So I ran out, still grumpy from restless sleep and lack of coffee, about to chide him for his carelessness, when I saw firsthand what had caused all the fuss – the most spectacular, stunning, amazing rainbow we had ever seen! (I am not one to string superlatives together, but this sight truly defied description!)
 

It was a perfect half circle, parallel to the horizon, and our porch was centered right in the middle of it! It was as if God said, “Have a seat, kids, and enjoy the show, because I’ve given you the best seat in the house!”

The arch of the rainbow was thick and unbroken by clouds, even though a few fleecy clouds dotted the gray-blue sky. A silvery rain sparkled in the sky to the left of our unit, but oddly there was no rain in front of us to blur the perfect view. The colors were vibrant jewel tones of ruby, sapphire, emerald and topaz, reflecting into the robin’s egg blue waves as the ends of the rainbow reflected on and disappeared into the water. The perfect arch was exactly centered on the horizon and extended over two thirds of its length. It was as if the gateway to Heaven had opened before us!

As we sat there agape, we thought about taking a picture, but we realized that even a wide-angle lens would be far too narrow to encompass the glorious sight visible only to our eyes. Instead we were content just to bask in God’s glory (Deuteronomy 5:24), the beauty of the Master Designer’s creation (Genesis 1-2), and His faithfulness to bless us! It was time just to be still, and to know that He is God (Psalm 46:10).

As we sat in silent worship, praise and thanksgiving, a man came out onto the beach, and almost instantaneously the brilliant rainbow began to fade, disappearing completely in just a few seconds. It was as if God orchestrated this magnificent display of His greatness solely for our benefit.

If God takes the time and care to answer the small requests of His children in such a lavish way, would He not be even more faithful to provide for our greatest needs? We still have no resolution of our trial, and no knowledge of what tomorrow may bring. Yet we know that no harm can touch us that He does not allow to accomplish His perfect plan for our life (Job 1:9-10), and we trust Him to work all things together for our good and His glory (Romans 8:28).    

Jeremiah 33:3 Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and show thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not.

© 2019 Laurie Collett

Reposted from the archives

In Living Color:Triplets of Light

 

Photo by Jessie Eastland 2012

Vibrant color has always brightened my spirits, released my darkest fears, and shed light on the gloomiest shadows of my soul. I still remember a kindergarten field trip to a meadow blooming with violets, where I immersed myself in the sea of deepest purple hues, floating on a bed of green leaves, shimmering with pale silvery gold at the center of each blossom.

Oh, and the joy when I got my first box of 64 different colored crayons! I immediately drew a picture of diagonal lines and squiggles, each tone blending to the next to form a rainbow of brilliant colors. How exciting when our home got its first color television, and we sat staring in awe at the NBC peacock! From early childhood I have been blessed that the dreams I remember are in living color.

And when I had psychological testing to determine whether I could enter school a year early, I later learned that my responses to the black and white ink blots were highly advanced in their complexity and organization. But when confronted with the ethereal pastels on the colored blots, all I could utter was squeals of delight, or deep sighs of contentment, or at best, “Ooh, pretty!”

In Scripture, the earliest mention of color is in three verses (Genesis 37:3,23,32) describing Joseph’s coat of many colors, symbolizing the extravagance, range and richness of his father’s love, just as Our Father lavishly showers us with blessings! (Ezekiel 34:26)

The next mention of “colours” in Scripture, the word is repeated three times, ironically describing the richness of the spoil Sisera’s mother imagines he will bring home, not yet realizing he is dead (Judges 5:30). King David provided precious stones of many colors to decorate God’s house (1 Chronicles 29:2), and God promised Israel a building of gemstones with fair colors, specifically sapphires, agates, and carbuncles ((Isaiah 54:11-12).

God gave us richly all things to enjoy (1 Timothy 6:17), the full spectrum of visible color being but one of them. His visible creation speaks to the artistry. power, and majesty of the Creator, for it reflects His invisible attributes, eternal might and Godhead (Romans 1:20). He is the Master Painter Who designed the unfathomable beauty of each sunset, and the varied palette He used for every plant, creature and landscape (Genesis 1). Not only that, but He also gave us two eyes and one nervous system to be able to appreciate His handiwork in three dimensions.

One of the earliest questions children ask is “Why is the sky blue?” I believe our early fascination with color reflects our God-given desire to know our Creator (Acts 17:27), Who is the source of color as well as of all the beauty and complexity we see in the natural realm. We therefore have no excuse for not realizing there is an Intelligent Designer (Romans 1:20; Psalm 8; 19:5), and for not reaching out to the One Who designed us in His image as the masterpiece crowning His creation.

God Himself is light, and in Him is no darkness at all (1 John 1:5). Light encompasses a spectrum visible to the human eye, as well as higher and lower frequencies of energy, or electromagnetic radiation. God has allowed us to see His creation and from that to infer His creativity. As technology has advanced, we can now even “see” the invisible spectrum using special cameras and recording devices.

Because of His all-consuming glory, no man can see God’s face and live (Exodus 33:20), just as no human can stare into the sun without going blind. To our eye, sunlight appears white, but if we split a sunbeam using a prism, we can see all the colors comprising “white” light. While we are on earth, we can and should use the prism of God’s Word to learn more about His attributes, promises, and accomplishments as the One True Light (John 1:9; 3:19; etc.).

The prism shows us that there are three primary colors on which all other hues are based. Red may symbolize the shed blood of Jesus Christ (Ephesians 2:13; Hebrews 9:14; etc.); blue His living water (John 4:10-14.); and yellow or gold His life-sustaining Gospel light (John 9:5; !2:46; 2 Corinthians 4:4);.

The three secondary colors of purple (red and blue), green (blue and yellow), and orange (yellow and red) may also portray different aspects of Christ. Royal purple symbolizes His role as King of Kings (Revelation 17:14;19:16). He is also the Saviour giving eternal life (John 3:16,36) foreshadowed by evergreen trees on earth. He is the Judge Who rained fire on Sodom and Gomorrah (Genesis 19:24; Jude 1:7), Who sends those who reject Him to hellfire (Mark 9:43-45), and Who will one day cleanse the earth with fire (2 Peter 3:10-12).

God Himself shows us this full spectrum of colors in the rainbow, using droplets of water to refract sunlight into its component frequencies, which appear to us as three predominant stripes. How amazing that He used this sign to show His mercy, love and grace, by memorializing His promise to Noah never again to destroy the earth by flood (Genesis 9:11-17).

Unlike the disciples and followers of Jesus who knew Him during His earthly ministry, we cannot look into His compassionate eyes (Matthew 9:36;14:14; 15:32), see the Spirit of God descending on Him like a dove (Matthew 3:16; Mark 1:10), or watch His radiant ascension into Heaven (Acts 1:8-9). But His Spirit indwells each born-again believer who has trusted in His death, burial and resurrection (1 Corinthians 15:1-4) as the only Way to Heaven (John 14:6). That Spirit teaches us about Christ, Who in turn reveals to us the glory of the Father (John 14:9,16-31; 1 John 2:23-24).

We cannot yet see Him in all His glory, but only as “through a glass, darkly.” Glass in the days that Paul wrote this verse (1 Corinthians 13:12) was made of sand, with many impurities, ripples, and variations in thickness, so that looking through a window pane was more like looking through frosted glass of today. We can perceive shapes, shadows, and movement, but not detail, color, or pattern.

I believe it is the impurities in our sin nature that cloud our perception of Christ. Thanks to Adam (Romans 5:12), we are marred by the lust of the eyes, the lust of the flesh, and the pride of life (1 John 2:16) and we have captured too many images craved by our flesh, sought after in the world, and presented by the devil to tempt us. As the saying goes, it takes one to know one, and as long as we are hindered by our sin nature, we will not be able to see the full splendor of His radiance.

Human language and experience therefore lack the power to describe what John and Paul saw when given a glimpse of Heaven (1 Corinthians 2:9; 2 Corinthians 12:2) and the Lamb of God on His throne. John describes the enthroned Christ as three gemstones: jasper, sardine stone, and emerald, which generally have predominant hues of red, yellow and green, surrounded by a rainbow (Revelation 4:3). He also portrays the “mighty angel” of Revelation 10 as having a rainbow upon his head (v. 1).

Oh, but the unspeakable joy we shall experience when we see Jesus face to face! Then we shall see and know Him as completely as He now knows us (1 Corinthians 13:12). May the day soon come when faith shall become sight (2 Corinthians 5:7) and we shall see, know and experience Him in living color!

© 2015 Laurie Collett

Reposted from the archives

See What God Can Do!

Photo by Marwan Mohamad 2016

Recently my husband and I had some unsettling news that struck us like a bolt of lightning and has been hanging over us like a heavy cloud ever since.

No one knows what tomorrow may bring, and we are not even promised tomorrow (James 4:14). But as born-again Christians (John 3:3-8) who have trusted in the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ (1 Corinthians 15:1-4) as the only Way (John 14:6) to Heaven, we do know that with God, all things are possible (Matthew 19:26), and without Him, we can do nothing (John 15:5).

It is tempting to try to take control, using our flesh to bring about a solution, rather than yielding to God’s perfect will, love, knowledge and power (Isaiah 26:4). Yet His grace is sufficient, and His strength is made perfect in our weakness (2 Corinthians 12:9). We must leave our burdens at the foot of His cross, for those who wait on the Lord, and His perfect timing and resolution, will have renewed strength and rise up with wings as of eagles (Isaiah 40:31).

Looking back on trials we have gone through before, it is reassuring to see how God always is faithful (1 Corinthians 1:9; 10:13), always protects and provides for us (Matthew 6:25-34), and always gives us what we need, even if it is not always what we think we want (Matthew 6:8). Not only in our own lives, but in those of our brothers and sisters in Christ, and in countless Bible examples, we can see His hand at work (Isaiah 41:10).

Sometimes all we need to have the peace that passes all understanding (Philippians 4:7) is a little reminder, like a love note or unexpected blessing as a token of our Bridegroom’s constant, unfailing love (Jeremiah 33:11). So when we first learned of this trial, part of my silent prayer to our Father was that He would show me a rainbow as a symbol of His protection and provision (Genesis 9:13-16).

We live in Florida, and it is summer, when showers often pierce sunny skies, so this is not an unreasonable request. It is hardly of the order of magnitude of Gideon asking for his fleece to be bone dry in the midst of soggy ground (Judges 6:36-39), or of Elijah pouring buckets of rain on the altar and asking God to ignite it with fire from Heaven (1 Kings 18). And I know that I can be sure of God’s love without needing a sign (Matthew 16:4), for we already know of the life-changing sign of the empty tomb!

Still, I longed for this reassurance. A full month went by, with no rainbow, even though we had been outside often as we had started a daily brisk walking program. Finally, last week while walking the beach at sunset as storm clouds were brewing overhead, I happened to look up. There was the smallest, barest sliver of rainbow light peeking through the dark cloud cover!

I showed it to my husband and shared with him that I had prayed for this sign of God’s promises, and we thanked God together for showing it to us. But God always answers prayer exceeding abundantly (Ephesians 3:20) beyond what we could ever think or imagine!

The next morning, we both awoke an hour before we had planned to get out of bed. So we stumbled downstairs to get dressed for our daily brisk walk before it rained or got too hot. I was in the next room when I heard my husband yelling my name to come right away, followed by the blaring of the house alarm! In his excitement to open the sliding doors facing the beach, he had forgotten to shut it off!

So I ran out, still grumpy from restless sleep and lack of coffee, about to chide him for his carelessness, when I saw firsthand what had caused all the fuss – the most spectacular, stunning, amazing rainbow we had ever seen! (I am not one to string superlatives together, but this sight truly defied description!)
 

It was a perfect half circle, parallel to the horizon, and our porch was centered right in the middle of it! It was as if God said, “Have a seat, kids, and enjoy the show, because I’ve given you the best seat in the house!”

The arch of the rainbow was thick and unbroken by clouds, even though a few fleecy clouds dotted the gray-blue sky. A silvery rain sparkled in the sky to the left of our unit, but oddly there was no rain in front of us to blur the perfect view. The colors were vibrant jewel tones of ruby, sapphire, emerald and topaz, reflecting into the robin’s egg blue waves as the ends of the rainbow reflected on and disappeared into the water. The perfect arch was exactly centered on the horizon and extended over two thirds of its length. It was as if the gateway to Heaven had opened before us!

As we sat there agape, we thought about taking a picture, but we realized that even a wide-angle lens would be far too narrow to encompass the glorious sight visible only to our eyes. Instead we were content just to bask in God’s glory (Deuteronomy 5:24), the beauty of the Master Designer’s creation (Genesis 1-2), and His faithfulness to bless us! It was time just to be still, and to know that He is God (Psalm 46:10).

As we sat in silent worship, praise and thanksgiving, a man came out onto the beach, and almost instantaneously the brilliant rainbow began to fade, disappearing completely in just a few seconds. It was as if God orchestrated this magnificent display of His greatness solely for our benefit.

If God takes the time and care to answer the small requests of His children in such a lavish way, would He not be even more faithful to provide for our greatest needs? We still have no resolution of our trial, and no knowledge of what tomorrow may bring. Yet we know that no harm can touch us that He does not allow to accomplish His perfect plan for our life (Job 1:9-10), and we trust Him to work all things together for our good and His glory (Romans 8:28).    

Jeremiah 33:3 Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and show thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not.

© 2019 Laurie Collett