Untested faith may
be true faith, but it is sure to be small faith, and it is likely to remain
little as long as it is without trials. Faith never prospers so well as when
all things are against her: Tempests are her trainers, and bolts of lightning
are her illuminators.
When a calm reigns on the sea, spread the sails as you will, the
ship does not move to its harbor; for on a slumbering ocean the keel sleeps
too.
Let the winds rush and howl, and let the waters lift themselves,
though the vessel may rock and her deck may be washed with waves and her mast
may creak under the pressure of the full and swelling sail, it is then that she
makes headway toward her desired haven.
No flowers are as lovely a blue as those that grow at the foot
of the frozen glacier; no stars gleam as brightly as those that glisten in the
midnight sky; no water tastes as sweet as that which springs up in the desert
sand; and no faith is so precious as that which lives and triumphs in
adversity.
Tested faith brings experience. You could not have believed your
own weakness if you had not been compelled to pass through the rivers; and you
would never have known God's strength if you had not been supported in the
flood.
Faith increases in quality, assurance, and intensity the more it
is exercised with tribulation. Faith is precious, and its trial is precious
too.
Do not let this, however, discourage those who are young in
faith. You will have trials enough without seeking them: The full portion will
be measured out to you in due course.
Meanwhile, if you cannot yet claim the result of long
experience, thank God for what grace you have; praise Him for that degree of
holy confidence you have now attained: Walk according to that rule, and you
will still have more and more of the blessing of God, until your faith will
remove mountains and conquer impossibilities.
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