Day 164: Trusting Patiently

Jesus said to her, "Did I not say to you that if you would believe you would see the glory of God?"  John 11:40

Don't we all need to remember this message more?

It is so easy for us to turn to fear whenever things in our lives get tough.  When we are out of a job, or if we are facing some conflicts with our families or friends, we might try to go straight to stressing out about the situation and fearing for the future.  Rather than comforting ourselves, our response only serves to harm us more.  We end up turning away from our faith and even downright cursing God whenever we start to rely on fear.

I'm certain that we all enjoy having instant results for everything we do (just look at where our feats of technology have brought us in that regard).  However, when we live our lives with such a fast pace, we start to think that everything should be moving quickly; or, conversely, we think that things that take time are faulty.  Just taking a look at practically any passage from the books of Samuel, Kings, or Chronicles will show how the nations of Israel and Judah were struggling with that.  When things didn't go quickly for them, they turned away from God and went to other idols.  In the same way, we will start to turn to idols.  We will start to throw money at our problems as if that will save us.

But Jesus has told us time and again, if you would believe you would see the glory of God.  How many times have there been miracles in your life?  I can count so many.  I was born into a family that supports me in all my endeavors.  My family loves me for who I am.  I have great friends in my life.  I have been supported throughout my school and as I transition into having a full-time job.  God has provided so much for me, and I witness God's glory in every aspect of my life.  When I start to fear or turn away, it is because I no longer want to see God in every situation.  Rather than trusting in God, I would rather trust in other things.  But God is the only one who will set things straight in my life.  When we believe, we see the glory of God all over our lives.

Day 129: Unwavering Faith

"But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind."  James 1:6

This is one of my all time favorite verses.  It taught me so much about faith when I first read it, and each time that I come across it, it bears the same weight on my life.

As Christians, we have to live our lives faithfully, and one of the ways to do that is to do everything out of faith.  We should be able to point all of our actions back to our faith in the one God.  Our love should come from our faith.  Our practice should come from our faith.  Our hospitality should come from our faith.  Our faith is the root to everything that we do.  If we do not have faith, we don't have anything.

Imagine if you asked a close friend or your partner to do something.  You ask simply because you expect/know that it will be done.  You have forged a relationship with this person because of the amount of trust that you have put into this person and because you know that there will be support coming from this person.

When I think about this, I immediately wonder why I would ever cast any doubt upon God.  I mean, why would I pray if I don't even have a reason to pray?  Why would I get all worked up, kneeling on the ground, reaching up with my hands, shouting before God if I am not expecting for my prayer to get answered?  That sounds like an awful lot of effort for something that doesn't matter.  Even worse, why would I place so much doubt upon the being who has guided me and saved me and transformed me in so many different ways?

God should have all of my trust.  I shouldn't have to wander away from time to time just out of curiosity or doubt.  That makes absolutely no sense.  If I do all of that, I become as a wave.  I cycle above and below the water, and I only live as long as I don't bump against a rock or any other body floating on the sea.  That's not a very good lifestyle for me to adopt.  Instead, I should be prepared to communicate with God.  More importantly, I should be prepared to encounter God, even when it might be a shock to me.

Communication with God is difficult because God is not like every other human being on the earth.  God is God.  Therefore, we need to prepare ourselves to talk to God.  It's not that God isn't going to listen, but it's that we are going to lose sense of God when we go unprepared.  There are some easier preparations, such as by attending church or reading the bible.  But the real test comes when you approach prayer.  Is your mind ready to speak to God?  Are your hands ready to reach for God's hands?  Are your ears ready to hear what God has to say?  It's only when we are prepared to communicate with God in faith that we will have a rewarding conversation.