After walking with the Lord for 32 years, I came to a major crisis point in my life. I lived most of those years in fear and worry of what negative circumstance would overwhelm me next. Some mountains would just not move, and my faith could not move them.
I went back to the Bible, as I had done countless times in the past, to find out why I had such weak faith. I found the same verses pertaining to faith that I read so often through three decades of time. Even conversing with the Lord in prayer brought no clarity to this issue.
One day, however, God highlighted a verse for me that I never saw before. It said, “Lord, I believe. Help my unbelief.” I burst into tears, because this father, who came to Jesus for healing for his son, voiced my exact feelings (Mark 9:29).
My unbelief came from my distrust, which was birthed from my dim observations of hope throughout my lifetime. I had so many devastating disappointments over the years. The resulting strong doubts in my mortal nature prevented me from fully trusting in the Lord with my WHOLE heart.
Through this obscure verse in the Bible, God wanted us to see that our place is to make a commitment to Him to believe, and then, He would give us the faith we needed. Our human resistance to change and our fear of the unknown is the basis for our lack of confidence to meet life head on.
Proverbs 3:5-6 was the answer to this conundrum for me: God calls us to trust in Him with all our heart; and not to lean on our own human understanding; but to consult Him in all our decisions every single moment of the day, and He shall faithfully direct our paths.
Prayer:
Father God, You never give us Your directions ahead of time. You always give us Your grace to face our trials one moment at a time. Therefore, remind us that anxiety, worry and stress never help us at all. They are futile negative emotions that erode our health and trouble our soul. Help us to submit to You, so You can carry out Your purposes on this earth through us.
You are not looking for strong, bold, impetuous Saints who run around the earth working for You. You are looking for humble servants who will yield our will to Yours, and to allow You to work in and through us to do Your good and perfect will (Romans 12:2). As branches, we draw everything we need to bear fruit through the Vine of Christ and the nutrients of Your Spirit. We do Your will, not by our faith, but through Your Spirit, who flows into us through the Vine of Christ.
Thought for the Day:
The darkest hour always comes just before dawn, so in any trial, our redemption is always very near; God’s grace is sufficient to help us stand against doubt, because His strength is perfected in our weakness, and His grace makes the difference in our faith.
- 2 Corinthians 12:9; Titus 2:14; Colossians 1:14; Ephesians 1:7
