They told him (Thomas) “We have seen the Lord!” But he replied, “I won’t believe it unless I see the nail wounds in his hands, and put my fingers into them, and place my hand into the wound in his side”. John 20:25
I find Thomas so refreshingly real and honest. He speaks for us all in many ways, as so often we as humans will not believe anything unless we can touch it, taste it and/or see it. A question you do have to ask is why was he missing when Jesus first appeared or when the two who met Jesus on the Road to Emmaus returned. Was he off being busy with his stuff?
With Easter now behind us and the rest of the year stretching before us with a degree of uncertainty, it is a good time to pause and undertake a faith check. So often we let circumstances rush the top of us that we don’t take time to pause and reflect on the miracles that God is performing instead asking ‘where is He?’, ‘what is He doing?’ And so on.
If we pause and take stock of what has happened in Australia, not so long ago we were plagued by bushfires and crippling drought. God brought rain in abundance that put out the fires (originally predicted to burn until April or May with no rain until April), restocked the dams with water (so we could wash our hands with the virus issues) and has been working a quiet miracle in many of the drought ravaged communities – refilling rivers and bringing forth green grass for the livestock.
However, so often like Thomas, we do not see what is happening because we are not present with God even though God is present with us. Now is a good time with a pause in the rush of society to restock our faith reserves.
Godspeed
Rev Steve Neuhaus
Eagles Rest Ministries