I am reminded this morning of the many, many times in Scripture that God has called His people to wait upon Him. The many times God has promised to do extraordinary things, but does not reveal the timeframe for His promises to unfold. My mind thinks of the story of Noah...God told Him that He was going to destroy the earth, and warned Noah to build an ark to save his family. Noah obeyed God even though it must have cost him his reputation and popularity, yet in the end it saved his life. Abraham waited excruciatingly long years for God to fulfill His promise of giving him a son through his wife Sarah. He made mistakes along the way, but through it all God persevered his faith and Abraham learned obedience through waiting. And in the end God gave Abraham a son through Sarah and his name was Isaac, and he brought his parents laughter. Skipping ahead....Mary must have felt like any other girl in her town, but when God gave her a mission and a promise that through her the Messiah would come, she obediently submitted to God's plan even though it would make her look like an adulteress. She trusted God that He knew what was best for her and she also knew that He was her "Best".
So many other stories of God's promises and people's faith or lack of faith. The amazing thing is that faith is not something we can muster up on our own...it too is a gift from God just as the promise He gives us are. So how do we get this gift of faith from God? Ask the Lord. He will give freely to those who ask Him.
Faith will cost you, though so beware. It will cost you everything this world holds dear, because when you live by faith you do not live by the standards and expectations of those who live in this world. You instead are living for the Lord and you are confident that your citizenship is in heaven where Jesus is. This will not go over well with others and they will not understand, but how else can we live when we know the truth? How can we not endure a little misunderstanding from the people around us in order to live close to the heart of God seeing life through His eyes. keep this perspective in your sights and live by faith today. How? Obey God. When God says TRUST ME....trust Him. When God says SEEK FIRST THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN....do it. When God says DON'T BE ANXIOUS ABOUT ANYTHING BUT IN EVERYTHING BY PRAYER AND SUPPLICATION....pray and don't worry. Always easier said then done. But this is my own challenge today to rest in God's hands and trust Him with my entire life.
So many other stories of God's promises and people's faith or lack of faith. The amazing thing is that faith is not something we can muster up on our own...it too is a gift from God just as the promise He gives us are. So how do we get this gift of faith from God? Ask the Lord. He will give freely to those who ask Him.
Faith will cost you, though so beware. It will cost you everything this world holds dear, because when you live by faith you do not live by the standards and expectations of those who live in this world. You instead are living for the Lord and you are confident that your citizenship is in heaven where Jesus is. This will not go over well with others and they will not understand, but how else can we live when we know the truth? How can we not endure a little misunderstanding from the people around us in order to live close to the heart of God seeing life through His eyes. keep this perspective in your sights and live by faith today. How? Obey God. When God says TRUST ME....trust Him. When God says SEEK FIRST THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN....do it. When God says DON'T BE ANXIOUS ABOUT ANYTHING BUT IN EVERYTHING BY PRAYER AND SUPPLICATION....pray and don't worry. Always easier said then done. But this is my own challenge today to rest in God's hands and trust Him with my entire life.
