On The Edge

I passed it in the hallway just now, hanging on the wall above the Merry Chrismoose Family.

It’s written on a star that hangs on the Christmas tree in our family room. And there’s a scroll saw version of it, painted country white, which rests on an end table year round. It’s charming.

Why is it so hard to do more than admire it?

Right now it’s a pretty popular saying. I didn’t buy any of its clones at the Family Christian Bookstore. I think I bought them all at Kohl’s or Walmart or something. They’re easy to find. Everyone thinks it’s good advice to follow, but nobody tells you what it means.

All they tell you is to do it. Nobody tells you how.

Believe.

I have a favorite line from the original Miracle On 24^th Street movie. Have you watched it yet this Christmas? The disenchanted child of a disillusioned mom comes face to face with the person she most wants to trust. But the conflict is that, if she believes, she will step away from all she’s been told is truth. In the end, she steps away. Hesitantly. Half heartedly. Tentatively. Then she whispers to herself—and the camera,

“I believe, I believe, it’s silly but I believe.”

Only after believing does she see, because seeing is not believing. Instead, believing is seeing.

The easy thing for any of us to do is trust in ourselves. Trusting someone else can be a whole different story, particularly if you’ve ever been let down.  Let’s say someone promised to love and care for you but didn’t. After that kind of rejection, the only one left to depend on is yourself, right?

You’re always going to watch out for you, especially if you’ve seen the ugly side of a pretty promise. It’s up to you to protect yourself when no one else will do it. “I’ll take care of me,” becomes our motto and, suddenly, we become the source of our own truth.

But that’s not the definition of truth. That’s just the definition of opinion.

How can we ever risk believing again? Who is worthy of our trust, our confidence, and our reliance?Only One. Only the One Who knew before you were taken hostage that you would need a Hero. Only the One Who took off His crown, put on a disguise of flesh, and walked among us. Only the One Who gave up His Life for the love of His life. For you. And me.

That’s Who we can believe in. In the One Who always keeps His promises. “God Himself has said, I will not in any way fail you, nor give you up, nor leave you without support. I will not, I will not, I will not in any degree leave you helpless, nor forsake, nor let you down, nor relax My hold on you!”

Remember, believing is seeing. If He lied about this, then He’s not God.

Merry Christmas. It’s safe to believe again.

(Hebrews 13:5 Amplified Version)