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I continued my morning walk, musing about how often our loving heavenly Father speaks to us in the midst of difficulties, and about the response—faith—that his words are designed to engender in us. And I was quick to draw the obvious lesson: Just as the hapless creature needed to admit the hopelessness of his plight, cease struggling, and trust me unconditionally to receive my assistance, so also we must entrust ourselves to God.

As important as this connection is, it was not God's message for me that crisp fall day. My musings took me to a deeper question: Why did the bird exercise faith? Only then did I glimpse what stands at the heart of the great mystery of trust: The crow had realized in his own way what we are called to realize. We only become willing to risk all and take the bold step of genuine faith—of entrusting ourselves to God fully, completely, unreservedly, for good or for ill—when we see in this particular situation that God is our last and only hope.

Stanley J. Grenz is the Pioneer McDonald Professor of Theology at Carey Theological College, Vancouver, British Columbia.

Copyright © 2004 Christianity Today.Click for reprint information.

Other CT articles by Stanley Grenz from the Christianity Today Library include:

Drive-Through Christmas | The irony is that in our rush toward Christmas, we truncate the celebration. (Dec. 6, 1999)

Is Hell Forever? | Annihilationists anticipate one ultimate destiny for the wicked, an undifferentiated nonexistence. (Oct. 5, 1998)

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February 2004, Vol. 48, No. 2