Anytime our faith is connected to receiving something from God, we stand the chance of having our faith shaken, because God works outside of our human parameters. If our faith is in God alone, and not dependent upon anything else, we will not be blown away by the winds of adversity in our life.
Instead, we will look for God’s purpose in them, and we will know that He is going to work out every trial for our eventual good (Romans 8:28). Only as we fully consecrate our entire being to God, do we come to walk in our complete salvation of spirit, soul, and body (1 Thessalonians 5:23).
If we live our Christian walk using our human talents for the Lord, we will find a measure of success, but we will thwart God’s ultimate purpose in our life (Ephesians 2:8-10). He intends for us to recognize that in our self, there is no good thing (Romans 7:18).
If we depend on our self to find success in this life, we may or may not reach our goals. However, if we depend on God’s Spirit, the fulfillment He brings to us is more satisfying than anything we could earn by our self-efforts. If we understand this truth, we ultimately live with more peace and joy.
Therefore, God calls us not to depend on our own understanding, but to consult Him before we do anything (Proverbs 3:5-6). We desperately need God’s Spirit to direct our steps. God may use our natural talents, but only as directed by His Spirit.
We do not have to comprehend God’s ways in order to embrace them fully and to partake of His divine life within us. He helps us in our unbelief (Mark 9:24). We make a habit of walking by faith, instead of depending on our human understanding (2 Corinthians 5:7).
Prayer:
Father God, we humans put more pressure on ourselves then You ever created us to sustain. That is why so many of us self-destruct and end up mentally, emotionally, and physically ill. We are flawed from birth and need Christ’s sacrifice on Calvary’s cross in order to be complete (Colossians 2:10).
Only You can bring beauty from the ashes of our life (Isaiah 61:1-3). When we forsake all of our dreams and ambitions, and we abide fully in Christ (Philippians 3:8; 1 John 2:27). You give us back more than we ever relinquish to You. Forever satisfied with Your provision, we never experience a lack for any good thing that we need (Psalm 34:10).
Thought for the Day:
Most events that we view as trials are simply God’s way of answering our prayers; we often want to see supernatural results, but God rarely intervenes in extraordinary ways, because He usually uses normal means to do extraordinary things in our life.
