Saturday, October 23, 2010
Faith, The Number One Survival Tool
The world was mesmerized recently as we witnessed the rescue of thirty-three miners who had been trapped, for 69 days, in the “San Jose” mine in Capiapo, Chile. Thanks to the diligence and ingenuity of many rescuers, on Wednesday, October 13, 2010, the last miner was lifted to the earth’s surface in a cage, through a narrow hole drilled through 2,000 feet of rock. Books and movies are already being planned, to tell the story of how these men survived for 16 days on: two spoonfuls of tuna, a sip of milk, a bite of cracker and a morsel of peaches, every other day. How were they able to look death in the face and not despair?
One of the 33 Chilean miners who was trapped for 69 days said, “I took the best hand, the hand of God, and I held on to Him. I never thought for one minute that God wouldn’t get me out of there; I always knew.” This man discovered, first hand, what faith in God can do!
In a cable tv interview, Ben Serwood, author of Survivor’s Club explained: “Faith is the most powerful and universal of the survival tools…. When these miners were first found … they wanted toothpaste, and they wanted Bibles… they quickly set up sort of a makeshift church, underground where they could pray every day.” He went on to say that, “The guy who wrote the Navy book on surviving every imaginable crisis (and this was a surprise to me) says that the number one survival tool (and this is a guy who’s trained decades of Navy sailors how to survive in a hostile environment) he says, the number one survival tool in a crisis is faith in God.” (http://video.foxnews.com/#/v/4373309/faith-is-force-multiplier-for-survivors/?playlist_id=86857)
There is nothing like a crisis to remind us of our frailty and our need for a Savior. Historically, many major spiritual awakenings were preceded by crises. For example, the storm of 1900 that destroyed Galveston, TX and the earthquake of 1906 that rocked San Fransisco, CA were disasters that helped fuel Pentecostal revivals that have since influenced millions to receive the baptism of the Holy Spirit. People just had to get desperate enough to truly have faith in God. The truth is that God is always ready to move in people’s lives, but human nature is such that we often resist turning to God for help until our back is up against the wall.
Perhaps you are dealing with some sort of crisis right now. You will find that even as friends and coping mechanisms fail you, faith in God will serve as a refuge. One song called it “an anchor that holds, and grips that solid rock.” None of us enjoy crises, but most of us have done most of our growing and learning during difficult times. It is, in fact, the storms of life that blow away the deadwood of our lives and prove what is good and trustworthy.
If you are struggling to survive, pick up that number one reliable survival tool. Find a support group that will do what the Chilean miners did – read the Bible and pray. Make it a point to express your faith through times of personal and corporate devotions and worship. It works, because only God can save us. But He can only save us if we are humble enough to reach for his hand.
One of the 33 Chilean miners who was trapped for 69 days said, “I took the best hand, the hand of God, and I held on to Him. I never thought for one minute that God wouldn’t get me out of there; I always knew.” This man discovered, first hand, what faith in God can do!
In a cable tv interview, Ben Serwood, author of Survivor’s Club explained: “Faith is the most powerful and universal of the survival tools…. When these miners were first found … they wanted toothpaste, and they wanted Bibles… they quickly set up sort of a makeshift church, underground where they could pray every day.” He went on to say that, “The guy who wrote the Navy book on surviving every imaginable crisis (and this was a surprise to me) says that the number one survival tool (and this is a guy who’s trained decades of Navy sailors how to survive in a hostile environment) he says, the number one survival tool in a crisis is faith in God.” (http://video.foxnews.com/#/v/4373309/faith-is-force-multiplier-for-survivors/?playlist_id=86857)
There is nothing like a crisis to remind us of our frailty and our need for a Savior. Historically, many major spiritual awakenings were preceded by crises. For example, the storm of 1900 that destroyed Galveston, TX and the earthquake of 1906 that rocked San Fransisco, CA were disasters that helped fuel Pentecostal revivals that have since influenced millions to receive the baptism of the Holy Spirit. People just had to get desperate enough to truly have faith in God. The truth is that God is always ready to move in people’s lives, but human nature is such that we often resist turning to God for help until our back is up against the wall.
Perhaps you are dealing with some sort of crisis right now. You will find that even as friends and coping mechanisms fail you, faith in God will serve as a refuge. One song called it “an anchor that holds, and grips that solid rock.” None of us enjoy crises, but most of us have done most of our growing and learning during difficult times. It is, in fact, the storms of life that blow away the deadwood of our lives and prove what is good and trustworthy.
If you are struggling to survive, pick up that number one reliable survival tool. Find a support group that will do what the Chilean miners did – read the Bible and pray. Make it a point to express your faith through times of personal and corporate devotions and worship. It works, because only God can save us. But He can only save us if we are humble enough to reach for his hand.
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