FAITH IS POWER

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FAITH IS POWER

"It is to be noted here that doubts and difficulties surround us just to move us

and confirm our faith. We are tested as it were. If we only hold on steadily to

Baba with full faith and continue our endeavours, our efforts will be

ultimately crowned with success" –Sri Sai Satcharitra, ch. XXIX.

Faith is power. Without faith, living is impossible. We have the faith in

tomorrow following today. That is what makes us take up activities and projects

that extend beyond this day. People with no faith cannot plan; they face misery

by their want of faith.

A rich man in South Africa once heard a divine which promised him a gold mine,

if only he would dig at a certain place. He dug at that place to a depth of 200

feet and failed to discover any vein of gold. His faith declined. He doubted the

authenticity of the voice. He talked to others how the voice misled him. When

another rich man heard his story, he developed great faith in what he believed

to be God’s command. He dug in the same area and found a rich gold mine barely

three feet below the surface of the earth. That became the richest and most

famous of the gold mines of South Africa.

During the Second World War, steamer carrying Indian sepoys was bombed by the

Japanese and was sunk. Many lost their lives. Only five men managed to row

their life boats and hoped to have a chance to survive, in spite of the surging

ocean. They were tossed about for many hours. One of them became desperate. "The

sea will swallow me. I will be food for sharks," he cried, and, in panic, he

fell into the sea. Another sepoy wept for his family, "I am dying without

arranging for their future," he thought. He too lost faith in his survival and

breathed to his last. The third man said, "Alas, I have with me the policy

documents of insurance. What a pity I did not give them to my wife. How can she

get the amount, now that I am dying?" And he also died.

The other two men reinforced each other’s faith in God. They said, "We shall

stick to life, however desperate the situation, because God has created us for

some good purpose. We shall not yield to fear. We shall not give up faith in

god’s compassion and power." They had to give up the leaky boat and swim

towards the shore. Within 5 minutes, a helicopter sent from a coastal ship

which had received signals for help from the sinking steamer, sighted them and

hauled them up to safety. While safe on land, they said, "It is only three feet

of soil between victory and defeat." Faith won victory.

(From Mira May-June 2004)

Thought for the day

Has someone offended you? Has someone insulted you? Remember, insults are like

bad coins. You can’t avoid getting them, but you can always refuse to accept

them.