When I was kid, I remember my dad sitting at the kitchen table with a road map and a yellow legal pad whenever we were getting ready to take a trip. He would carefully mark off the route and the mileage between various points along the way. He liked having a plan.

Today, sites like Mapquest and Expedia make trip planning much easier. Before setting out on a trip, I like to investigate the various routes I can take, what towns I’ll pass through and where I can spend the night. I like having a plan and a budget. I like minimizing surprises, at least the bad ones, whenever I’m traveling.

Before the internet, I was willing to accept more risk than I am now. Years ago, I would set off on a road trip and have a general idea of where I wanted to stop for the night and would then just pull off the interstate and start looking for the nicest place to stay in my price range.

Now I find I’m less willing to just take a risk on where I’ll sleep for the night. I always like to check out the customer reviews before making a reservation. The days of just pulling off the highway and hoping for the best are over.

Like my dad, when I’m traveling, I like to have a plan. I like to know when I’m leaving, how many miles I’m going to cover that day and where I’m stopping for the night. It’s always fun to be spontaneous, but I usually try to minimize the risks and surprises when I’m spending lots of money on a trip.

Surely, among the 12 disciples, there was at least one guy like me who liked to know what was coming up, what the accommodations were going to be, what time dinner was, etc. So I wonder what it was like when Jesus called them together, gave them authority over evil spirits and then sent them out in pairs to do some ministry with these instructions:

“Take nothing for the journey except a staff—no bread, no bag, no money in your belts. Wear sandals but not an extra tunic. Whenever you enter a house, stay there until you leave that town. And if any place will not welcome you or listen to you, shake the dust off your feet when you leave, as a testimony against them.” (Mark 6:8-11)

So two guys were supposed to set off on their own with nothing except a staff. No food. No water. No change of clothes. No money. No plan. No idea where they’d sleep.

Just two guys, each with a staff and authority over evil spirits.

What better way to teach the disciples to live by faith than to give them the opportunity to do it.

How about you? Does God have you in an uncomfortable situation? Is trust in Him all you’ve got right now?

Maybe your plan “A” failed and you don’t have a plan “B.”

Maybe the relationship you’ve worked so hard on hasn’t turned out like you’d hoped.

Maybe the money has run out, you still can’t find a job and you’ve got to buy food. Not to mention paying the mortgage.

Could it be that God has allowed or even orchestrated your circumstances, so you will have an opportunity to live by faith?

No one intentionally seeks circumstances that require faith. Or at least very few of us do. We want to know where our next meal is coming from. And preferably the one after that. When the gas gauge is nearing “E”, we like seeing the sign that tells us there are three gas stations at the next exit. We want to know the results of our medical tests today. Yesterday would be better. Actually, we don’t ever want to have a condition that requires testing.

No, we really don’t want to live by faith. And yet…that’s God’s way. It just is.

We often talk about wanting to know God better. Well, know this about Him: He’s someone who likes to be believed.

Now you know Him a little better.

It’s interesting that we don’t get to see the reaction the disciples had before they set off on their journeys. I think they must have taken the instructions pretty well though. If they had complained or become fearful, I tend to think Mark would have recorded it and also told us how Jesus responded.

Instead, the next two verses simply say, “They went out and preached that people should repent. They drove out many demons and anointed many sick people with oil and healed them.”

Apparently, they all found places to sleep. No one starved to death. Everyone made it back. Mission accomplished. By faith.

If you can’t possibly see how your situation is going to work out, then just take the next step by faith. Refuse to give into fear and worry. Refuse to panic. Don’t get anxious. Do whatever you know to do and then leave the results in God’s hands. Seek Him with all your might. Remind Him (and yourself) that He promised to meet your needs.

His timing and His ways will be different than yours, but He will come through for you.