God tests Noah’s faith

Genesis 9:8-17
When I read the story of Noah, I wondered what a world would be like if the only people left in it were my family and myself. That’s what Noah faced, a world turned upside down, totally different from what he had known. God had led Noah and his family into the unknown, testing Noah’s faith under adversity, and yet the Spirit of God and the promises of God remained with Noah.
Later, the Israelites were also led into the wilderness, where faith was tested, and adversity was certain. In this week’s gospel reading of Mark, immediately after Jesus’ baptism, the Spirit “drove” Jesus into the wilderness, where he was tempted by Satan. All this reminds us that the Spirit also drives us into the world where we encounter adversity, resistance, and temptation.
Lent offers us a time to consider how we think about the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives, and how a gracious God accompanies us in our wilderness, and where he gives us strength to trust him when we face all manner of adversity, temptation.

Pastor Darryl

Photo by Toby Osborn on Unsplash