(Blog 4 as I continue with stories from our trip to St. Kitts.)

Max Lucado – “Our belief in God is not blind faith. Belief is having a firm conviction something is true, not hoping it’s true.”

Going on vacation to another region or country offers the chance to try different cuisines.  The Federation of St. Kitts and Nevis offered us that opportunity.  If you were to ask me “What kind of food do they eat on St. Kitts?” here would be my answer:  Of course lots of fish (St. Kitts is an island – duh) but they also enjoy pork and chicken – on the barbeque – and flavors of curry with plenty of rice and plantains on the side.

St. Thomas Aquinas – “To one who has faith, no explanation is necessary. To one without faith, no explanation is possible.”

On the recommendation of a friend, we ventured to Sprat Nets for dinner one evening.  The dinner choices for the evening were your pick of any two of lobster, ribs, chicken, or fish with a side of rice and some kind of corn Johnny cake.  I ordered the lobster and fish.  Well, Sprat Nets was very busy that evening and NOTHING happens quickly in the Caribbean so we sat at the picnic table on the beach and waited.  And waited.  Until it was dark and the only light came from the moon and a few lights on wooden poles – not much light at all.

Martin Luther King, Jr. – “Faith is taking the first step even when you don’t see the whole staircase.”

Finally our huge plates of food were delivered to us.  Yum!  Everything was hot and smelled divine.  Now this girl from the suburbs of Detroit here was expecting a nice piece of grilled fresh fish.  Oh it was fresh enough – in fact I got the whole fish!  Now I am not grossed out by the fact that my fish still had its head on.  My problem was that it was DARK out.  As I tried gingerly with my fork to tease the lovely bits of fish away from the boney skeleton of the fish, I kept grabbing bones with the meat and kept picking them out of my mouthfuls.  Ack.  The fish was sweet and tasty, but darned if I couldn’t see to dissect some lovely bites of boneless fish.  Blindly I stabbed at my fish, knowing there were great quantities of delicious fish to consume.  It made me think, today, of faith and the saying that believing is seeing.

Pastor Tim Hall – The world says, “Seeing is believing” – Faith says, “Believing is seeing”.

If people were to ask me how or why I believe in God, I think the basis of my answer has got to be faith.  I would love to SEE Jesus – to have walked beside Him when He Himself walked on this earth.  But I believe the bible is His inspired word – so I can read all about Him.  I know He hears me when I call and when I pray.  I don’t need to see Him.  I just know.  I just believe.  He has sent me messages and answers when I call.  And although I don’t see HIM, I see Him in all His magnificent creations.  Too many people need proof.  I love the simplicity of Judy the elf in the movie ‘The Santa Clause’ when she explains to Tim Allen about believing in Santa:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T8YxwlofIvQ

(click on the above to view the movie clip)

Joni Erickson Tada – “Faith isn’t the ability to believe long and far into the misty future. It’s simply taking God at His Word and taking the next step.”

Believing is seeing.  It’s as simple as that.  But when it comes to eating fish in the dark – well that’s when I think I really needed to SEE to BELIEVE that there were possibilities of eating fish without bones!

Just Laurel

Hebrews 11:1 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.