Christian Writers Circle

Time To See

by

Kathleen Shore

“Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.”

                                                                                                                                                                                    Hebrews 11:1

At seventeen, two years had past since Dad had died and the frozen temperatures of the white out storm I had driven into echoed the condition of my heartache.

Initially, I was unaware of the magnitude of my situation as I drove up the Colorado Rocky Mountain pass just as the snow began to fall. Within minutes my visibility was reduced to about 20 feet in front of me and with the steep incline of the road, I decided it would be best to put chains on two of my tires for traction. I was confident in this task, as I had been taught well…. I knew how to do it…. I even mustered up emotional strength for the moment by remembering how proud Dad had been, watching me tackle the practical things he felt to teach me before he died. But this time, I was alone.

Tightening the chains well, I crawled back inside my car. To finish, I would need to drive forward a short distance and then tighten them again. But as I put the gear in drive, fear drove a stake into my chest as I realized I was not able to see anything. I couldn’t see the wall of rock to my right that I had intentionally parked very close to, nor was I able to see the shear drop to my left on the other side of the one lane between us. My heart felt crippled as I peered out the window at my surroundings, looking for some point of reference so that I could safely move forward. But everything was white. There was no dividing yellow line on the road, not a tree or twig for a guide…. I couldn’t even see the hood of my car. I was caught in a place that was deadly to move forward, and to not.

Having become fatherless at the age of 15, I had spent much of the time since, clinging to every promise in God’s word and found myself reminding Him often of one in particular when He said, “I will be a Father to the fatherless.”

Not only was God on the move, paving a way in front of me with amazing provision and divine connections for His purpose, but He was also carving out His way in me. He wanted me to know Him…. He wanted me to see Him, straight through the mirage of the enemy, no matter what my conditions presented.

So near to my destination and having done all I knew, I closed my eyes and said, “Father, what should I do?” And with my eyes still closed, I heard Him speak to my spirit ear….”Can you see me?” Within His question, His voice called me upward to know His answer and I saw the figure of a man ahead of me, outlined in light. Then Father said, “Now open your eyes.” As I opened my eyes, my guide was still in view….

I eased my foot off the brake and began to inch forward. In holy fear of what I was doing, yet in total belief, I whispered back, “I can still see you.”

Very aware of the curve and bend of the road when I had pulled off, I took great comfort in knowing that my Father knew this neck of the woods like the back of His hand…. the same hand that had created it. So I followed on.

I followed for what seemed forever, but the distance I had covered really didn’t matter at that point, for I had come a long way with Him, in just a few feet.

Have you become blinded by the painful trial you are in?

Are you at a dead standstill, perishing for lack of sight or vision?

Oh my valuable friend, HE is the vision, that without it, we are perishing…

     Follow…. follow onward in the white out storm of your circumstance. With eyes to see and ears to hear, follow Him in unreserved belief that He knows the terrain. He knows the bend and curve of the road you are on.

Follow on with Him in raising and teaching your children. You do not need an earthly point of reference and comparison to ensure that they will arrive to their full potential and destiny. Get back to believing what God spoke of them before the foundations of the earth were laid. This is the truth of your children…. truth that lies in the spirit realm that cannot be seen with the natural eye. Follow on with Him in your marriage, your finances, within the pain of your great loss.

Though it seems an impassable mountain stands in front of you…. follow on.

Yes, blindly follow Him, and He will give you sight.

“For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what he already sees?

But if we hope for what we do not yet see, we wait for it patiently.”

                                                                                                                                                Romans 8:24, 25