Page 15 - Nov 2022 News On 7

FAITH IS A RISKY ADVENTURE
BY REV. TRACY B RICHARDS

“Peter answered him, “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.” He said, “Come” so Peter got
out of the boat, started walking on the water, and came toward Jesus.”
~ Matthew 14:28-29
American author and lecturer, Helen Keller (1880-1968), once said, “Life is either a daring adventure, or it is nothing at all.”
Her story is one of the great miracles of the twentieth century. Millions of people have drawn inspiration from her example.
Now, go back to the Bible and take a look at the men and women who did great things for God - Noah, Abraham, Moses,
Joshua, David, Elijah, Esther, Daniel, Nehemiah - almost without exception, they were risk-takers who were prepared,
through faith, to lay it all on the line for God.

The Apostle Peter is also an interesting character. Sometimes we see Peter full of faith; other times, we see him full of doubt.
Despite these extremes, however, Peter was always the one willing to ask hard questions. He was always the one exploring
what it means to really be a disciple and to follow wherever Jesus led him, whether it made sense to him or not.

What did these biblical figures have in common? They all stepped forward, following the call of God. The life of faith is
inherently a life of risk. If you are unwilling to take a chance, you can never discover what living by faith is all about. If you
think you have to have all the answers or need to feel 100% at peace before you make a decision, if you’re afraid to take a
step unless you know that things will work out to your advantage, faith will always be a mystery to you.

I’m so grateful that I found the courage to step forward in faith and run for Council in this election. Being somewhat new
here, it definitely felt like a risky endeavour at times, but I chose to approach it as an adventure and I have reaped many
rewards in the process. Even though I did not win a seat on Council this time, God blessed me with the opportunity to
participate in an essential part of our democratic process. This experience has taught me so much more about my new
community and my role within it. While “stepping out in faith” can often feel like stepping off a cliff, I’m comforted in
knowing that God always provides a soft place to land.

It has been a great honour to meet so many of my neighbours and to hear your stories. I was amazed by how welcoming
each of you were at the doors, how generous you were with your time, guidance and support and how willing you were to
share your experiences with me. In getting to know the men and women who serve in our various levels of government,
both past and present, it was truly heartwarming to experience the level of respect, dignity and genuine felllowhip which
was demonstrated by all departments and supporting organizations as well as between the candidates themselves. I feel so
proud to have stood amongst such a decent and kind-hearted group of people.

What started as a leap of faith has unfolded into a fun, enriching and rewarding experience and I want to thank each and
every one of you for the role you played along the way. Even though I will not be representing you in an official capacity, I
can promise you that I will continue to find new ways to support Council and to serve this community, as God leads.
I know there are many of you who want to see our community move forward so I encourage you to stay in touch with me,
share your ideas and get involved!

For more information on my upcoming local initiatives, please follow my Facebook page
https://www.facebook.com/tracybrichards.centrehastings, visit my website tracybrichards.ca, or email me at
info@tracybrichards.ca

May God bless Centre Hastings and our incoming Municipal Council and may He grant us freedom, safety and prosperity
over the next 4 years, and beyond!

If you enjoyed this post, I encourage you to subscribe to my blog at tracybrichards.com/blog.
For more information about my ministry email me at tracy@tracybrichards.com.
For wedding or life celebrant inquiries visit xolifecelebrations.com
Listen to my Practical Ministry segments on the Born To Fly Podcast here