Charles Blondin was a French tightrope walker and acrobat. He is best known for tightrope walks across Niagara Falls, including pushing a wheelbarrow, walking on stilts, standing on a chair with only one leg balanced on the rope, and sitting midway to cook and eat an omelet. During a UK tour in 1862, Blondin ferried a lion in his wheelbarrow across a wire at the Liverpool Zoological Gardens.

During a stunt, he announced his next move to an often-scoffing audience, but one man believed in him, cheering, “You can do it, Blondin! I believe in you!” As Blondin performed, he added variations like walking blindfolded, in a sack, and pushing a wheelbarrow. The crowd doubted each time, but his one fan cheered him on. After the wheelbarrow act, Blondin said he would carry a man on his back across the tightrope. Again, the crowd doubted, but his supporter urged, “You can do it, Blondin! I believe in you!”

Blondin then smiled at the man and said, “Very well, my good sir, since you have such faith in me, I will carry you!”

You can imagine what happened next. The man’s face turned pale, and he stammered, “I’m sorry, Blondin. I can’t do that! I’m afraid of heights and get dizzy! I might panic and make you fall!” Instead of carrying his only fan, Blondin carried his manager on his back across the tightrope, much to the relief of his fan.

Do we resemble that fan, professing faith in God yet losing trust in times of hardship? I recall a college poster showing a kitten clinging desperately to the end of a rope, with the caption, “Faith is not faith until it’s all you’re holding on to.” When everything is going well, it’s easy to trust in Jesus. However, during difficult times, holding on can be challenging. Do we trust Jesus, and are we willing to place our faith entirely in His hands? Are we willing to trust Him to carry us through hardships? God assures us in Psalm 32:8, “I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my loving eye on you.” Psalm 37:23-24 says, “The Lord makes firm the steps of the one who delights in him; though he may stumble, he will not fall, for the Lord upholds him with his hand.” “Christianity is not believing the impossible; it’s doing it.” Let us trust God to carry us as we do the impossible.

Take care,

Bill R.