November 14, 2010
How can disciples remain faithful to God in the face of hardships and trials?
Saw an interesting quotation this week that read, “Everything will be okay in the end. If everything is not okay, it is not the end.”
Not a bad advice if you are facing a bad situation; and quite a biblical way to handle life’s problems.
To trust God and serve Him faithfully in times of great trials calls for faith. This faith requires that we take our eyes off life’s physical circumstances to the Supernatural invisible God of life.
During times of great stress and struggles, we put our hope in God and pray that everything will work out well in the end. However, if in spite of our petitions and prayers, things fail to change for the better and sometimes even if it takes a turn for the worse, we must not lose heart.
Trials and difficulties cannot put a full stop to our lives. Even if everything is not okay, it is not the end.
To remain faithful disciples of Jesus, we must learn to shift our focus from the huge mountains to the God of the mountains. To live faithfully, we learn to discern the Presence of the Invisible in the pressures of the visible. Then we can declare as Habakkuk did in Habakkuk 3:17-19,
“Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines,
though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food,
though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls,
yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will be joyful in God my Savior.
The Sovereign LORD is my strength; he makes my feet like the feet of a deer,
He enables me to tread on the heights.”
Saturday, November 13, 2010
Sunday, November 7, 2010
Faith, trust and risk
November 7, 2010
What is faith? The Bible says,
‘Faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.’ (Hebrews 11:1)
Faith is conviction in an invisible God who creates, sustains and controls the visible world. Faith is belief in what this invisible God says He has done and will do. Our faith is in a Person, not a plan or a program or even a church. Our faith is in the Person, Jesus Christ. ‘No one has ever seen God, but the one and only Son, who is himself God and is in closest relationship with the Father, has made him known. (John 1:18).
Faith trusts the invisible God and believes that the unseen is more solid and real than what our naked eyes can see. Faith, when exercised, will inspire others to trust God and gives God the free hand to demonstrate who He is.
Risk is part of the faith equation. Where there is no risk, there is no need for faith. Hudson Taylor, the founder of O.M.F, captured it in one statement,
"Unless there is an element of risk in your exploits for God, there is no need for faith."
Yet all risk is calculated risk. Jesus says we are to sit down and count the cost before building – and that is our role as disciples of Jesus. To do our homework thoroughly, know the cost, all the risks and consequences and then ultimately – still trust God.
When our faithfulness and faith in God come together as one, God, the Master builder, takes over. A beautiful partnership between God and us unfold and the results are miracles and divine encounters.
In following God, the greatest challenge is not circumstance, but our lack of faith in a trustworthy God.
Without faith, it is impossible to be faithful because the root of faithfulness is faith.
What is faith? The Bible says,
‘Faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.’ (Hebrews 11:1)
Faith is conviction in an invisible God who creates, sustains and controls the visible world. Faith is belief in what this invisible God says He has done and will do. Our faith is in a Person, not a plan or a program or even a church. Our faith is in the Person, Jesus Christ. ‘No one has ever seen God, but the one and only Son, who is himself God and is in closest relationship with the Father, has made him known. (John 1:18).
Faith trusts the invisible God and believes that the unseen is more solid and real than what our naked eyes can see. Faith, when exercised, will inspire others to trust God and gives God the free hand to demonstrate who He is.
Risk is part of the faith equation. Where there is no risk, there is no need for faith. Hudson Taylor, the founder of O.M.F, captured it in one statement,
"Unless there is an element of risk in your exploits for God, there is no need for faith."
Yet all risk is calculated risk. Jesus says we are to sit down and count the cost before building – and that is our role as disciples of Jesus. To do our homework thoroughly, know the cost, all the risks and consequences and then ultimately – still trust God.
When our faithfulness and faith in God come together as one, God, the Master builder, takes over. A beautiful partnership between God and us unfold and the results are miracles and divine encounters.
In following God, the greatest challenge is not circumstance, but our lack of faith in a trustworthy God.
Without faith, it is impossible to be faithful because the root of faithfulness is faith.
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