Faith Like Noah. Those were the words on the back of the young man’s hoodie. I turned to my loving other and laughingly said, “I had faith like Noah, twice. The first time, I invited a flood of circumstances. The second…an ark full of animals.”
And so it is. When the Sacred within invites us to do something contrary to popular opinion, we can trust that the boat in rising waters is a lifeboat, or give way to drowning in a need to conform.
It is interesting to be a part of a community and also sense an individualized call. At what point do we lose our integrity, because we failed to be true to the still, small voice inside?
That’s when Fear asks, “What if you no longer belong?”
Great Mystery answers. “Each person, creature and thing is a distinctive part that makes up the grand whole.”
What began as a quiet rumbling, became a storm too loud to ignore. So, I chose to trust the message and step into the unknown.
There, alone in the void, I became more aware of myself and how I wanted to relate to people. The inner work felt like mucking an ark. Later, animals brought companionship and humor.
They presented themselves, in my paintings and dreams, as different expressions of Holy Spirit that I could name as archetypes and guides. Sometimes they appeared as difficult people in my life, and I in theirs’, which added comic relief.
Laughter, happiness and joy can open us to forgiveness if we allow ourselves to grow beyond our own importance.
Every now and then, we need to pull inside to remember who we are. It requires a faith like Noah’s to let the sound of crashing waves drown out rivaling voices. Nonetheless, if we can trust during the dark, stormy night, perhaps we will emerge to see every thing and each person in a brand new light.
Making Spirit Flesh*
Faith like __________ (insert your name). What does that look like?