Observation of a Slide

In the early hours of the morning one time while I was looking after a sick child, I started thinking about slides as in a children’s playground. You start off on the little one and don’t think that you can do it but mum encourages you to try anyway. You finally make it to the top step, look down and everything seems to be such a long way down. You look ahead and think “that seems very steep” but mum says “don’t worry, I’m here to help you”. She finally encourages you to let go of the handrails and holds your hands as you go “wheeeeeeeee”. You get to the bottom and think “Wow, that was great! Let me try that again.” You get back up to the top of the slide and you’re still frightened, but this time, you remember how it felt to be going down the slide so you need less encouragement to let go of the handrails. Soon, you are going up and down the slide on your own without any help from mum at all.

The next time you go to the playground, you go back to the slide you played on and it’s scary again at first, but you still remember how much fun you had last time. You climb the steps again and although you still feel frightened, you go down the slide without hesitation because you now know the reward waiting for you as soon as you let go of the handrails. After a few more turns, you don’t feel frightened any more. Then your friend calls you over and asks you to come on the slide she is on. You look up at it and think that it’s got a few more steps than your slide has and it definitely looks steeper. You climb the steps apprehensively and then almost freeze when you get to the top. It’s even higher than you imagined and the slide is much steeper but your friend tells you how much “better” it is than the smaller slide. Finally she convinces you, you pluck up enough courage to let go of the handrail and with gritted teeth, begin your descent. You can’t believe the thrill you have just had when you get to the bottom so you want to try again. The next time someone asks you to try an even bigger slide, it’s a little bit easier.

Isn’t that how it is with faith? God asks you to do something and although you think that you can’t do it, your youth leader really believes in you and encourages you enough to take that first step of faith. You finally step out in faith, still terrified but willing to do what God asks and the reward that God gives to you is so great! The next time the challenge comes along, you still remember the thrill of the last slide you came down which then helps you to overcome the terror you feel of this next challenge.

God has already taken me down some little slides and although it seems to be many years since I was last at the top of the slide, I still haven’t forgotten that thrill that it gives coming down. As I look back, in truth, each time I did any thing that God used me for, I was terrified to a greater or lesser degree, but God didn’t leave me to cope with things on my own – He always held my hand on the slide when I was frightened, something I have never forgotten. It is true that I don’t have very much confidence but I mustn’t allow that to limit what God can do with me. God doesn’t see that as an obstacle that He can’t overcome. I just need to put myself in God’s hands, making my experiences available to Him if He wants to use them and ask Him “Where do I go from here?” Yes, the thought of this does terrify me but I have never forgotten God’s faithfulness to me.