The way we react to trials and disappointments may reveal what our spiritual foundation really is.
A Christian leader named Ian Leitch was asked to speak to a businessman’s staff at work. Ian agreed, and when he was done, one woman asked to speak to him privately. She said that at age 22, she and her boyfriend were in a major car accident. He was killed and she was badly injured and needed a number of surgeries. She said that after all this, she had lost her faith.
Ian responded by offering her an analogy. He said that when huge ships are built they don’t turn big hoses on them to see if they leak – instead, they sail them out on the open water. Such trials prove if a ship is seaworthy. In the same way, a person only knows if their faith is real when they go through trials.
Then he asked the woman, “Can I ask you honestly, did you lose your faith or did you find you had none?”
She said, “Ian, I guess you are right, I had none.”
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Ian Leitch, Life Before Death! A Restored, Regenerated, and Renewed Life (Green Acres Press, 2007)