Cling to Your Faith

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Back in 2021, I spent several months in the wilderness of northern Minnesota. I was working for a wilderness ministry called the Coldwater Foundation. As a staff training, we spent 17 days out in the wilderness backpacking and canoeing. The peak moment of the whole training trip was a solo experience. For ~30 hours, I was alone on a section of a lake with nothing but a sleeping bag, sleeping pad, a small 6x2 tarp, bible, pen, journal, and water bottle. The following post is a reflection on what happened during my solo experience, and how it can be translated to the lives of struggling Christians everywhere.

When I was first dropped off on my section of lakeshore, I was feeling excited. I had seen the show Alone, and was ready to get to work surviving all by myself. Reality set in shortly after I was dropped; I quickly got bored, and realized that there really wasn't much to do out there. After what had seemed like a couple of hours, the fun and excitement of being alone was gone, and I was left with my thoughts and a bible to keep me company. As I read through the Gospels, prayed, and devoted that time to God, I became increasingly aware that God was there with me. At times, I fell to my knees and wept because of the incredible presence of God. When I had nothing, and was all alone, I had to cling to my faith and reach out to God, and he reached down to me as I encountered him in a vivid way.

Rev. Billy Graham quoting his mother says: "You have accepted Christ as your Savior and whether you have feeling or not, the moments that you don't feel anything are the moments when he may be the closest, because that's the moment you must walk by sheer faith".

In times when we feel all alone, look to the Lord. It is so crucial for the Christian to cling to their faith as they walk along in life, because times when we feel alone are inevitable. Take heart that we are never truly alone. I learned that lesson out in the middle of nowhere Minnesota, I wonder where it will happen for you.