Emphasis Preaching Journal

I remember visiting in the hospital a woman in her 40s, a member of my parish, who had cancer. I visited with her on two or three occasions, and during that time we spoke of her fears and faith. One day after entering into her hospital room, the first thing she said to me was, "Pastor, how can I get a stronger faith?" In speaking with her that day I learned the reason for her question. This woman was angry with God, with her illness and with herself. She was angry with God for allowing her to become ill, with the illness for putting her in the hospital, and with herself for the way she was behaving toward God. She was also filled with guilt. Why? The day before I had visited with her, her sister-in-law had visited her, and her sister-in-law, who was an active Christian, told her of two women in her church who had been healed of cancer. She told this woman if she had faith, God would heal her. She prayed all that day, long into the night, but up to the time when I visited with her, she hadn't been healed, and she was convinced that it was her fault that God hadn't healed her. It was because she didn't have a strong faith; thus, the reason for her question, "Pastor, how can I get a stronger faith?" "What is faith?" I asked her. "Isn't it trusting God?" she said. "It is easy to trust God when things are going well," I said. "But it becomes more difficult when we encounter troubles. I don't know what God has in store for you, but I do believe that the Lord loves us all and that God will always provide for us." I also told her that she had that kind of faith. We all must live one day at a time, trusting the future to God's hands. -- Frank