We know that we need to have faith in God to live our lives to the fullest. But how do we get it? Where does faith come from?
One day when my daughter, Leslie, was young, she came home from school very excited. As she slammed the door and threw down her books, Leslie told me that she had prayed with a friend to receive Jesus as Savior. She went on to say that she had asked Jack if he believed in his heart that Jesus was raised from the dead. He tensed every muscle in his body, scrunched up his face, held his breath, and gasped, “yes.”
Aren’t we like that? We feel as if we need to try harder to somehow conjure up the necessary faith. We strain harder, but it just doesn’t happen.
Well, there’s a reason that we can’t conjure it up. Faith doesn’t come that way. We can’t force ourselves to have great faith by tensing our bodies or holding our breath. Faith is a natural outgrowth of meditating on the word of God.
Romans 10:17 says “faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God.” So why two “hearings?” That word for hearing in the Greek is “rhema.” It refers to God speaking to you. In other words, when you read the Bible, God begins to speak to your heart. It’s truly a supernatural thing that happens. You read and meditate on the word of God and you begin to hear God speaking to you personally. As you hear that, you find yourself believing.
I believe that one of the greatest miracles in our world today is the Bible. God, over hundreds of years, spoke to men and gave them His wisdom. He laid down His plans and revealed His nature. Centuries before Jesus came to the earth, God spoke through Isaiah and others, telling of the sacrifice that Jesus would accomplish. At first people didn’t understand it, but later, when Jesus fulfilled the scripture, men were able to “get it.”
If you haven’t read your Bible much in awhile – or ever – I challenge you. Begin to read it on a regular basis. And don’t just read it. Find some scriptures which are especially speaking to you, and say them over to yourself throughout the day. Ponder them. Let them stay in the forefront of your mind. You will begin to believe what you are saying.
Just as the physical food you eat automatically becomes nutrition for your body, this spiritual food of God’s word will strengthen and develop your spirit and you will find yourself growing in spiritual strength. Your faith will grow by itself as you feed your spirit.
Life is truly an adventure when we nourish our spirits this way. God’s plan is such a great one, if we will just get in on it!
Are you a real Christian? That may seem like a strange question. What does an “unreal” Christian look like and who could possibly be one?
In Matthew 6:1-18, Jesus talks to the crowd about just such a thing. He said to beware of “practicing their righteousness before men to be seen of men.” Now of course, He wasn’t talking about being a true witness, or about “letting their Gospel light shine.” He was talking about being a phony.
He said that when you give, not to sound the trumpet and give in a haughty way. There are those who are big givers, but want everyone to know about it. They brag about the large sums and they ceremoniously display their generosity.
Then He said that when you pray, not to try to show off your scriptural understanding or your great ability to pray. It’s easy to understand what He is talking about here. You know how there are some who do know a lot of Word, but want to make sure that others know they know.
Finally He said that when you fast, not to put on a gloomy face and show off your spirituality by letting everyone know that you are fasting. (The same would apply when you are fasting your desires so that you could give to His causes).
What’s the big deal about letting others know what you are doing? Well Jesus knew that the real “you” is the one you are when you are alone- when no one is watching. When you want to give, pray, or fast – not because it makes you look good to others, but because it’s who you are. You want to be close to your Father God, and you want more of His operation in your life. You want to hear His voice and be obedient.
One of the problems about the “being seen of men” syndrome, is that you can actually even fool yourself by your displays. Think of the well-known ministers who have looked so magnificent to the church, and then have been exposed as phonies. I am sure that the very fact that they saw themselves displaying great spirituality even blinded them to their sin – or at least the seriousness of it. They thought of the good they were doing and excused the secret sins.
The real “you” is who you are when you are alone and no one is watching. Ultimately, as Christians, our accountability is to our Creator and no one else. He is looking at the real deal. His relationship is with the true person, not with a poser. And the success of our Christian walk depends on what is real in our lives, and not on what others think.
In fact, if “what others think of you” is predominant for you, a snare is sure to follow. One of the saddest passages in scripture to me is in John 12:42-43.
Nevertheless many even of the rulers believed in Him, but because of the Pharisees they were not confessing Him,
lest they should be put out of the synagogue;
for they loved the approval of men rather than the approval of God.
Isn’t that sad? Many who believed in Jesus helped to crucify Him because they wanted man’s approval more than God’s.
That’s what can happen to any of us in smaller ways, if we live our lives to be seen of men. We will ultimately compromise our true beliefs. We will ultimately rationalize our bad decisions. We could ultimately find ourselves denying our Lord.
So, forget what men think. In your heart of hearts, establish that secret true, passionate journey of life with your Maker. Let your giving, your prayers, and your fasting be between you and Jesus. He is the one you answer to – and He is the one who rewards your life.
If your secret life is real, then others will know it. They will see the fruit of humility, compassion, and faith that comes with that life. When you do pray or speak in an assembly, the anointing of a true believer will shine through. Your words of witness will be strong, and the Holy Spirit will work with you with signs following.
Faith can seem like a strange thing. One day you can feel on top of the world. You are facing huge obstacles, yet you are trusting God and you know way down deep in that place that’s hard to describe, that you are going to come through this OK. In fact, you are quite sure that the obstacles are crumbling before you.
Then there are other days. (You know, one of “those” days). Just getting out of bed in the morning seems like a huge feat – and one that you might not be able to pull off!
So what happened? How can that be? One day you’re up; one day your’re down. One day you see yourself right up there with David …and Paul! The next day, you’re more like Demas, the loser.
Will you ever be consistent and not wavering? You begin to doubt your ability to walk with God in a reputable way. Can you truly be His person?
Yes, you can … and if you are asking the question, you are! You just have to understand the nature of faith and why it may seem elusive.
One way to grasp the right perspective would be to compare your spiritual strength to your natural strength. Life is fluid. Health is fluid. Strength is fluid. Strength of any kind is not like an object which you acquire and proudly display. It is part of your living being, and as in any part of life, there are efforts which are essential for success.
Consider an athlete – such as an NFL player. Can you imagine what would happen if he took his strength for granted? He wouldn’t be around very long. Even when he looks and acts like he has arrived at the zenith of physical perfection, he continues to work out and to practice. And, if he suffers an injury and has to sit out for awhile, his training increases to a new level upon his return. The athlete knows that his strength, endurance, and physical expertise are totally dependent on practice and training. He would never expect to maintain his desired level of achievement while in a total rest mode.
We need to take a lesson from the athletes. We need to honor the precious thing we call faith – our belief in God – our trust in His Word – and our zealous appropriation of all that He has for us. We must realize that it is a living thing. It grows or it diminishes. And a lot of the current status of this precious faith is dependent upon our current mindset.
The Bible says that “Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God.” (Romans 10:9) The nutrition which feeds our faith is God’s Word, and if we aren’t nourishing our spirits with his rich food, our faith will be diminishing. Even if yesterday we considered ourselves spiritual giants, yesterday’s food will not keep us full of faith. It’s like the manna in the wilderness which became rancid on the next day. We need fresh food everyday.
Then in Jude 20, we see that faith is built up by praying in the spirit. So how is your daily prayer life? Do you check in with your spiritual headquarters every day, listening for direction, heeding His nudge, and listening for His voice of encouragement and affirmation? Do you speak His Word into the atmosphere around you, changing the fog of delusion into the clarity of His vision?
Remember, yesterday’s manna is rancid. Every day we start with a new need for our Father and His Word. Every day we have an opportunity to build on our strength of the past, or to allow that strength to recede. Staying the same is never an option.
My husband has led those in our church to say often, “I believe God.” You might think, well of course we do. But as you say those simple words, you will find your spirit leaping within you. A resounding, “yes!”
All of society around us needs us to truly be believers, strong in our understanding and faith. So let me encourage you. Believe God. Read His Word. Pray. Do those things which build up your faith, and those things which cause it to continue.
One of the blessings of fall, is to watch college football games. My husband and I sit there mesmerized as we watch the young, enthusiastic players pass, catch, kick, and run. Such energy! Such determination! Part of the excitement is that you never know who is going to win. State of mind and determination can sometimes override sheer size and talent. But not always.
Last Saturday we watched one of our favorite teams, Ole Miss, get defeated by Texas. It’s a building year for Ole Miss, and Texas seemed to be already built! There was an obvious difference in size and experience. But we were really proud of our team. Even though they had a chance to be discouraged, they never gave up. They even continued to squeeze in 31 points of their own. They had nothing to hang their heads about. They left the game, knowing they had done their best, and they would continue to build.
In the middle of the night, I awoke and felt that the Lord was talking to me. He said, “The church feels like Ole Miss felt. It seems that the state of affairs in our country – and with the church- is one of being out-sized and out-experienced when coming against the foolish and even evil forces in our world.” And you know that that is true if we are depending only on our strength.
The good news for us is that we don’t have to depend on our own strength. We can count on God and all of His forces to help us when we do things His way. Pray, stay focused, and continue to build.
Hebrews 6:11-12 says, “We desire that each one of you show the same diligence so as to realize the full assurance of hope until the end, that you may not be sluggish, but imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises.”
So let’s remain diligent – or in some cases, get diligent. We can’t stop. We can’t give up. There may be forces coming against your personal life, but don’t let them cause you to give up. Refocus and face the giants again.
In many cases, we may think that we need to rebuild. Well, let’s do it! We rebuild our faith in God by meditating on His Word. We rebuild our faith in ourselves by prayer, listening to God, and, oh yes, by meditating on His Word. We rebuild our churches, our communities, and our world by prayer and sharing His Word.
We are in a big game! There may be giants facing us, but we can do this. Pray, focus, and build. Pray, focus, and build. Pray, focus, and build.
Let’s be not sluggish, but diligent, and see a turn around in our world.
I can remember, as a child at my piano recital, waiting for my performance to come up on the program. I would sit quietly, but totally distracted from music being presented. I was waiting for “my time” to come. That’s what I was there for. And when our group went back stage, it would have taken the national guard to keep us from running and playing as we waited. We were waiting for “our time.”
I’m sure that many who played sports would have similar recollections. We were there to do our part. Of course, we pulled for the team, but we wanted our part.
As children we longed to be in the game, but what happened to us? Maybe put-downs or discouragements, maybe setting goals so high only supermen could have accomplished them, but for some reason, as adults we are different.
As adults, we seem to have a “bleachers” mentality. No longer do we want to be in the game, but we live from the sidelines. As a result, we cheer for our team, and if they win, we think we have won. Then we turn on TV and watch American Idol or some reality show about which guy gets the girl. Later we pick up the latest gossip magazine and discover who is in crisis, but also, who is buying the most expensive cars, or having the most elegant wedding, or wearing the most costly shoes.
We are watching from the sidelines.
Even in the church this mentality exists. We watch celebrity teachers, and love the big accomplishments of big ministries. We often sit on the sideline and think that’s what it is all about. We were there or we heard the teaching, so that was our part.
Not me!! I don’t want to live from the sidelines. I know that God gave me this life, and I want to live it. I want to fulfill all that he has for me.
Now don’t get me wrong. I have received lots of inspiration and understanding from big ministries. But the important thing is not that I heard them, It’s what do I do with what I heard. Do I just put another Easter egg of revelation in my basket and put it back on the shelf? Or do I take the new revelation and apply it to my life, so that my life is continually changed for Him?
I want to do the latter. See, I know that each one of us has a part, and every part is important. Our part isn’t just to watch others, but to do what our Creator has called us to do. Can you imagine what the world would be like if all of us were actively doing “our part?” Some would be teaching or preaching, others would be exhorting and encouraging, then there would be those who were behind the scenes keeping all of the wheels oiled so that God’s machine could operate correctly.
The ones who teach wouldn’t think too highly of themselves, but neither would the “oilers” think too lowly. Everyone would be doing their part for God’s great plan to be accomplished. Just thinking about it puts a smile on my face!
So I am determined to be active everyday, pursuing the plans my God has put in my heart. Sometimes, no one knows what I am doing but Him. But He knows, and that is what counts.
As long as I am actively living my own life, I won’t be on the sidelines! And neither will you!
I still remember the day when I gave my life to the Lord. I had been pridefully living my way, with my opinions, and my pursuits, but I found that my road had taken me to a dead end. On that night, I fell on the floor face down and surrendered, saying, “Jesus, if you are real, I want you and I need you.””
The liquid love that encompassed me at that moment was one of the most dramatic experiences ever. He was and is real and He changed my life forever. I have been walking with Him ever since.
Have things always been easy? Of course not. But whatever the external circumstances, I knew that He would empower me to live above the fray. And He has.
Today’s video is a composite of teachings from Billy Graham. If you aren’t free today – from shame, depression, anger, sorrow, you can be.
