Do you have great faith?

“Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.” (Proverbs 3:5-6)

This past Sunday, I preached on the interaction between Jesus and a Roman centurion in Luke 7:1-10, which is noteworthy for Jesus marveling at the Gentile man’s great faith. One of the hallmarks of great faith is a childlike trust in the power and authority of Jesus, that He will faithfully accomplish that which He has promised. And one of the great men of faith was George Müller, a 19th century British pastor who founded and ran an orphanage in Bristol, England, that housed over 10,000 children during his lifetime, while also establishing 117 schools to provide Christian education. One of the remarkable things about his faith was that he never once made a request for financial support, but rather always prayed to God to touch the hearts of donors to make provisions for the orphans. God never let him down, and he never went into debt. Here is one example:
 
“The children are dressed and ready for school. But there is no food for them to eat,” the housemother of the orphanage informed George Müller. George asked her to take the 300 children into the dining room and have them sit at the tables. He thanked God for the food and waited. George knew God would provide food for the children as he always did. Within minutes, a baker knocked on the door. “Mr. Müller,” he said, “last night I could not sleep. Somehow I knew that you would need bread this morning. I got up and baked three batches for you. I will bring it in.” Soon, there was another knock at the door. It was the milkman. His cart had broken down in front of the orphanage. The milk would spoil by the time the wheel was fixed. He asked George if he could use some free milk. George smiled as the milkman brought in ten large cans of milk. It was just enough for the 300 thirsty children.”

 I first read about Müller in L.B. Cowman’s devotional “Streams in the Desert.” The entry for August 17th tells a story that I have never forgotten:

I went to America some years ago with the captain of a steamer, who was a very devoted Christian. When off the coast of Newfoundland he said to me, “The last time I crossed here, five weeks ago, something happened which revolutionized the whole of my Christian life. We had George Müller of Bristol on board. I had been on the bridge twenty-four hours and never left it. George Müller came to me, and said,
 
 “Captain I have come to tell you that I must be in Quebec Saturday afternoon.” “It is impossible,” I said. “Very well, if your ship cannot take me, God will find some other way. I have never broken an engagement for fifty-seven years. Let us go down into the chart-room and pray.”
 
 I looked at that man of God, and thought to myself, what lunatic asylum can that man have come from? I never heard of such a thing as this. “Mr. Müller,” I said, “do you know how dense this fog is?” “No,” he replied, “my eye is not on the density of the fog, but on the living God, who controls every circumstance of my life.”
 
 He knelt down and prayed one of the most simple prayers, and when he had finished I was going to pray; but he put his hand on my shoulder, and told me not to pray. “First, you do not believe He will answer; and second I BELIEVE HE HAS, and there is no need whatever for you to pray about it.”
 
 I looked at him, and he said, “Captain, I have known my Lord for fifty-seven years, and there has never been a single day that I have failed to get audience with the King. Get up, Captain and open the door, and you will find the fog gone.” I got up, and the fog was indeed gone. On Saturday afternoon, George Müller was in Quebec for his engagement.

I love that story, but not just for the miraculous answer to prayer. I love that according to the author, Müller prayed “one of the most simple prayers,” and proceeded to tell the other man not to bother praying. It reminds me that God does not respond to our many or elaborate words, but to our faith in Him. I pray that like George Mueller, you and I would take our eyes off of the “fog” that surrounds us and place it on the living God, who controls every circumstance of our lives.

What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? (Romans 8:31–32)