Crossing the Bandra–Worli sea link, I could not see the other end
The Bandra–Worli Sea Link! What a magnificent engineering work. It is about 5,600 metres long, a cable-stayed bridge with pre-stressed concrete-steel viaducts on either side, that links Bandra and the western suburbs of Mumbai with Worli.
Have you ever travelled on a hanging bridge? The kind that seems to shake to and fro as a heavy vehicle passes, where it is frightening to look down — and the funny thing is, sometimes you cannot even see the other end.
28th November
Last year, on 28th November, I was travelling over Worli Bridge, Mumbai, enjoying the ride on the cable-stayed bridge. The weather was awesome and a cool breeze coming across; the water down the bridge is clear and blue. I was enjoying the beautiful scenery around and excited to see where the bridge will end.
Then, halfway across, I began to be afraid. Will this bridge be strong enough to hold, with so many cars passing at once? I could not see the other end — it was too long, beyond my vision — and I started to wonder whether I would reach it. I looked up at the cables the whole bridge hangs from. What if one broke, or lost its grip?
I knew the bridge was just two years old, that on average thirty thousand vehicles pass over it every day, and that the construction was planned to last more than a hundred years. I admired the architecture and the design — and inside, I still doubted its firmness. I crossed with a little excitement and a lot of anxiety.
Only one word
Then I thought for a while about the uncertainties we face in daily life. It is the same as that bridge hanging across the water, where there is no guarantee of reaching the other end. There will be twists and tilts, ups and downs, and sometimes dangerous and worse situations.
I could remember only one word when I was travelling on that bridge, and it is “Faith”. Only complete faith in God would make my journey comfortable and safe for me to reach the other end. I can't see the other end, but when we start building faith, complete trust and seeking His will in our life, uncertain things are going to be certain. God will lift us up in His due time, very safely.
Uncertain things are going to be certain.
Deepakshi Satman
As the Bible says in Hebrews 11:1, “Faith is the confidence that what we hope for will actually happen; it gives us assurance about things we cannot see.” And in 1 Corinthians 16:13, “Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be men of courage; be strong.”
This life is full of twists and turns, but there is no need to worry, my dear friends, because God is still working in our lives. We come across a great deal of confusion, discouragement, rejection. I want to encourage you to hold on to faith in God in spite of the worst of it. You will see things change, and impossible things turn out to be possible.
Faith allows things to happen. It is the power that comes from a fearless heart. And when a fearless heart believes, miracles happen.
Deepakshi Satman
Wrote the Talent Search interviews across the magazine's first year. Appears on the 2013 masthead as publisher.