Tag: Faith

¹ Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. ~ Hebrews 11:1

As Christians, we are under a new and perfect covenant that is based on the premise of faith. According to Hebrews 11:1, faith is defined as the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. In other words, faith is believing regardless of whether you see it or not. Faith put into action can be seen as believing that what you prayed for will come to pass. This is the only thing that we can do to be saved. There’s nothing else that any of us can do that can save our souls; according to Ephesians 2:8, we are saved by faith alone. So, if faith is the root of our salvation, then would it not stand to reason that our faith is what the Devil is targeting most?

That’s the first thing the Devil did in the Garden of Eden. He simply cast a little doubt in Eve’s faith, and everything literally went to Hell after that. The Devil doesn’t work harder; he works smarter. He doesn’t try to reinvent the wheel. If it worked back then, then it’ll work today, and it still does. The first thing the Devil does is attack our faith. Whether it’s simply hitting us with a questioning dart or it’s taking things away from us that we cherish so that we begin to doubt God’s love for us. But we can’t give up and throw in the towel. When all things look hopeless and bleak, we have to have faith. When things seem right to man, but we know deep inside of us they are not right to God, we have to have faith. Why? Because that’s literally the definition of faith. We must believe even when our natural eyes can’t see what we’re hoping for and have faith it will come to pass.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Keep The Faith.

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³³ And he put the wood in order and cut the bull in pieces and laid it on the wood. And he said, “Fill four jars with water and pour it on the burnt offering and on the wood.” ³⁴ And he said, “Do it a second time.” And they did it a second time. And he said, “Do it a third time.” And they did it a third time. ³⁵ And the water ran around the altar and filled the trench also with water. ~ 1 Kings 18:33-35

Elijah had the people pour 12 jars of water over the offering and the wood until even filled up the trench around the altar that could hold mover than 14 liters of seeds. Elijah didn’t just ask the LORD to burn up his offering; he set forth a test that he knew only the LORD could ever answer. Because not only was the offering burned up, but the trench with all of its water, the wood, and the 12 stones that the wood was placed on. Elijah had no doubt that this task would be easy for God.

Today, God Himself dwells in us. The same Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead dwells in us. The Spirit of God hasn’t dwindled. The Spirit of God hasn’t stopped working. He’s waiting for a vessel like Elijah, that was a man no different than us, except in his prayer life and his faith. In fact, Elijah was at a disadvantage that we don’t have today. In those days, the Spirit of God wasn’t poured out on all flesh. The Son of God didn’t dwell in and through them. The only reason we no longer see miracles like this is because our faith depends on our prayer life which depends on our love for God.

Elijah prayed and believed because he knew the God whom he served and he loved Him. Today, the Church chooses the world over God 9 out of 10 times. We’d rather do anything than pray. We’d rather do anything than worship. We’d rather do anything than read our Bible. If we want to see the glory of God through His great signs and wonders, then we have to seek Him with all of our hearts. Our faith has to be unshakable if we want our prayers answered. We have to want more than a lukewarm relationship with God.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Desire More.

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²³ And when He got into the boat, His disciples followed Him. ²⁴ And behold, there arose a great storm on the sea, so that the boat was being swamped by the waves; but He was asleep. ²⁵ And they went and woke Him, saying, “Save us, Lord; we are perishing.” ²⁶ And He said to them, “Why are you afraid, O you of little faith?” Then He rose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm. ²⁷ And the men marveled, saying, “What sort of man is this, that even winds and sea obey Him?” ~ Matthew 8:23-27

Jesus and His disciples were in the ship, crossing over to the other side. These men weren’t men who had never been in a boat before. These men weren’t men who weren’t used to rough waves and weather. These were seasoned seamen that were with Jesus. They were crossing the lake when a tempest, or a huge storm, arose and threatened to sink the boat with them in it. I presume the disciples were rowing and bailing out the water from the boat to no avail.

So, they went to the back of the ship and woke Jesus up, asking for help. When He helps them by calming the storm, they marvel. They could hardly believe what they had just seen. Maybe it took them by surprise because they were not expecting that. Maybe they were expecting Jesus to grab a bucket or pan and start bailing out water. Or grab an oar and start rowing. Whatever they were expecting, it certainly didn’t seem to be that. That didn’t expect Jesus to stand up and speak to the storm and the storm obey Him. They weren’t ready.

Some of us are where these disciples were so long ago. We’re seasoned in our position, and then, out of nowhere, a storm hits, and we panic. Imagine how much more God will do for us if we cry out for help expecting the impossible. Think about it. The disciples were saved in such a miraculous way that they were shocked, meaning this wasn’t how they were expecting to be saved. So then, how much more will God do the impossible if we pray and expect the impossible?

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Expect The Impossible.

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⁵ When He had entered Capernaum, a centurion came forward to Him, appealing to Him, ⁶ “Lord, my servant is lying paralyzed at home, suffering terribly.” ⁷ And He said to him, “I will come and heal him.” ⁸ But the centurion replied, “Lord, I am not worthy to have you come under my roof, but only say the word, and my servant will be healed.” ~ Matthew 8:5-8

Look at the faith the centurion had. And he wasn’t even a Jew. He wasn’t even a follower of Jesus. Yet he put his hope completely in Jesus. His servant was sick. He heard all about Jesus and His mighty acts of healing. So, he himself went to see Jesus. He didn’t send someone else. Many Christians won’t pray for themselves, and others won’t even pray at all. They would rather someone else to labor in prayer on their behalf.

Now, I want to be clear. I’m not in no way discounting asking for prayer. Please, pray for me. If you can do anything, please remember me in your prayers that the LORD will open up doors and opportunities for us. That the LORD will always lead us in all things. But that doesn’t release me from the necessary task of praying myself. Jesus prayed for Himself. Paul prayed for himself. Both changed the entire world.

We have to be like them if we want to see a change in our lives. We have to be like the centurion who didn’t rely on someone else to do what he knew he ought to do if we want our loved ones healed or saved. We have to take it upon ourselves, just as that centurion did, if we want to see miracles, changes, and answered prayers in our lives. He wanted his servant healed, and he believed, and he knew Jesus could do it, so he himself went to ask.

• Your children aren’t serving the LORD?
  • Ask Jesus
• Are your children in unhealthy relationships?
  • Take it to the LORD in prayer
• Someone you love or know is sick?
  • Pray the prayer of faith
• Are you called to do something? And you sure it is the LORD and not the enemy distracting you?
  • Ask for confirmation from the LORD.
    • Remember, not every opportunity is of God.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Have The Faith of The Centurion.

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²⁸ And Peter answered Him, “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.” ²⁹ He said, “Come.” So Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water and came to Jesus. ³⁰ But when he saw the wind, he was afraid, and beginning to sink he cried out, “Lord, save me.” ³¹ Jesus immediately reached out His hand and took hold of him, saying to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?” ³² And when they got into the boat, the wind ceased. ³³ And those in the boat worshiped Him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.” ~ Matthew 14:28-33

Sometimes we are in that same boat. Life’s fierce winds are howling all around us, blowing over 100 miles an hour. The waves of the cares of this world are crashing against our ship and breaking over the bow, threatening to sink our ship. The lightning is flashing across the night sky as the deafening thunder crashes all around us. The ship is filling up with water faster than we can bail.

• Of course, we are saved
• Of course, we are serving Jesus
• Of course, we know He is our all sufficiency
• Of course, we depend on Him
• Of course, we know He is all powerful
• Of course, we know He can do all things
• We know the Scriptures we can quote
• We have the head-faith
• What we don’t have is the faith of a mustard seed
• We must get it from our heads and into our hearts
• We can confess it with our mouths, but until we confess in our hearts, there is no true faith

The thing is, when life’s storms begin to rage, our boat threatens to sink, and there is no land in sight. It is not that easy to put down the bailing pan and cast our cares and worries and fears on Jesus.

It’s just not that easy.

In times like that, we forget that He is all-sufficient. We forget that He is Almighty God. Why? Because we are looking with our natural eyes. So, we have a need to control the situation ourselves instead of casting our cares and burdens on Him because He cares for us. In other words, we have to stop looking with our natural eyes and start looking with our spiritual eyes. Sometimes it needs prayer in order to open our spiritual eyes, just as Elisha had to pray for his servant. Sometimes it just takes a change of focus through reciting Scripture. Either way, we must focus on God, for the waves cannot overtake us as long as our focus is on Him because what we focus on is whom we have our faith in.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Never Forget Whom You Serve.

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⁴³ So the Lord gave to Israel all the land He had sworn to give their ancestors, and they took possession of it and settled there. ⁴⁴ And the Lord gave them rest on every side, just as He had solemnly promised their ancestors. None of their enemies could stand against them, for the Lord helped them conquer all their enemies. ⁴⁵ Not a single one of all the good promises the Lord had given to the family of Israel was left unfulfilled; everything He had spoken came true. ~ Joshua 21:43–45

All of God’s promises are yea and amen. If He has promised, you can believe and stand on the promises of God. There will be many obstacles standing in our way. There will be many roadblocks that you will have to go around and maneuver through, even hindrances, but none can prevail against the Word of the LORD. There is nothing that can stop the hand of God. Nothing that can cancel His words or prevent His promises but you yourself.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Don’t Stop His Promises.

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¹¹ On the way to Jerusalem He was passing along between Samaria and Galilee. ¹² And as He entered a village, He was met by ten lepers, who stood at a distance ¹³ and lifted up their voices, saying, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us.” ¹⁴ When He saw them He said to them, “Go and show yourselves to the priests.” And as they went they were cleansed. ~ Luke 17:11-14

Ten lepers came to Jesus begging for mercy. They came to Him in faith and humility, crying out with a loud voice. They even declared who Jesus was by calling Him master, but none of that mattered until they obeyed in faith and walked away. It wasn’t until they stepped out in faith and walked to the priests to be checked that they were healed. See, even though they went to Jesus in faith, they had to first leave Jesus in faith in order to receive their healing.

When they left to go present themselves to the priests, they were still sick. They were still ten lepers when they left Jesus; it wasn’t until they started walking a little distance that they received their healing. It was a test of their faith. This is how it is with some of us today. Some of us are at Jesus’ feet, begging for our healing, declaring who Jesus is, crying out for mercy, while Jesus is telling us to get up and show ourselves to the priests. Go to the doctor. Get your checkup. But we’re still at His feet, begging for healing and mercy. So, many of us miss out on our healing because we’re too afraid to leave Jesus’ feet in faith. Sometimes, this is the only way we can be healed, so don’t let fear or doubt keep you from your healing. Walk out in faith.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Leave His Feet.

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² Now when John heard in prison about the deeds of the Christ, he sent word by his disciples ³ and said to Him, “Are you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another?” ⁴ And Jesus answered them, “Go and tell John what you hear and see: ⁵ the blind receive their sight and the lame walk, lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear, and the dead are raised up, and the poor have good news preached to them. ⁶ And blessed is the one who is not offended by me.” ~ Matthew 11:2-6

John was sent by God to prepare the way for the LORD. He proclaimed to the masses that Jesus was the Messiah. That Jesus was the promised Christ. Even though John had preached to the masses and baptized many, his faith was shaken when he was at the end of his life. See, Jesus was healing the sick, giving sight to the blind, and preaching love everywhere He went while John was chained up in prison. The Jews had preconceived ideas about who the Messiah was and how He was to save or redeem Israel. They expected the Messiah to overthrow the Roman Empire that was oppressing the Jews and to take His rightful place as King of kings and LORD of lords, yet Jesus didn’t do this. This caused many to doubt Him, including John, who led the way for Him and even baptized Him.

Today we face this same dilemma. We have our own preconceived notions of who Jesus is and how He would react to things without first taking the time to get to know Him. We no longer search for the Truth; now, we search for those who tickle our ears and validate our own biases. We’d rather stay chained up in a spiritual prison than to seek the Truth of God that will set us free because we don’t want to give something up. Oftentimes, we ignore the Truth of who Jesus is because we don’t want to fight the good fight. Because we want to stay in our own filth and muck where we’re comfortable and have a false sense of safety.

Other times it’s because we desire a Jesus that will bring judgment and punishment on our enemies, as I believe John did. It’s easy to be upset with God when He seems so distant, and everything around us seems like it’s falling apart, but always remember that God works all things out for good for those who love God and are called according to His purpose. Don’t allow your own idea of who you think Jesus should be cause you to miss out on who He is and be caught unawares and sleeping when He returns.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Trust Him Even In Prison.

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¹⁹ Everyone tried to touch Him, because healing power went out from Him, and He healed everyone. ~ Luke 6:19

All who touched Jesus in faith were healed by the power of the Holy Spirit. Not one who had faith was disappointed; all were healed. 2,000 years later, Jesus is no longer physically walking around His people. Instead, He is living inside of us and through us. His Holy Spirit, by whom He was filled with power and healed the sick, is with us and in us as well. So how much easier should it be for us to get our healing in today’s world, yet we rarely see healing today.

The Church is filled with sickness and disease, yet we have God Himself dwelling inside of us. The Church should be able to claim the promise ‘By His stripes, we have been healed.’ We have this as a promise from God, but it’s up to us to take hold of the promise and accept it by faith. It’s all been paid for. The only way we can be healed is if we have the faith that we will be healed.

Peace. Love. Go Forth and Accept Your Promise By Faith.

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