How’s your faith?
December 13, 2020
On my Christmas tree this year is a large glittery gold ornament that says “believe.” When I saw it at a store a few weeks ago, I was immediately drawn to it. I liked the font and the red bow and holly that embellished it, but most of all I liked its simple message. It spoke to me because, like most Christians, I find believing the most challenging aspect of Christian life. Consistently living and seeing life through the “God-lens,” focusing on the positive rather than the negative or choosing hope over despair is a daily challenge for most of us.
Interestingly, the word “faith” appears hundreds of times in the Bible and stories of faith in action are found throughout. The Scriptures commend the faith of those who dared to believe and trust God against all odds (Heb. 11) and go so far as to say that without faith it is impossible to please God (Heb. 11:6). Jesus taught his disciples the value of faith and rebuked them often for not believing (Matt. 14:21). It’s as though he was saying over and over, “trust me, guys, you really need to do this!”
The Bible’s persistent call to believe is understandable seeing how it’s only through faith that we can experience an invisible God.
Faith does the following five extraordinary things for us:
(a) opens our hearts to God and gives him permission to work in our lives.
(b) breaks our limitations by allowing us to see the unseen.
(c) enables us to see possibilities beyond our painful present.
(d) enables us to draw strength from God.
(e) makes life bearable by giving us a reason to live.
Faith is powerful, and the good news is that we all have some. We simply need to use it.
“…with people this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” (Matt. 19:26)