Tag: faith

Believe

On By vickleaIn Characteristics of God, God’s blessings, Scripture1 Comment

The word “believe” is an action verb that means (according the the New Oxford American Dictionary) to accept something as true. I believe that the sky is blue and look up and can see that it is, at least when it isn’t raining. It is easier to believe in things we see, touch, and can hear. But what about the spiritual things? How do we get to the place where we can believe without doubting?

When Jairus came to Jesus for healing for his daughter, others came and told Jairus not to keep bothering Jesus since she had already died. Jesus’s reply was to “just have faith.”

An important part of believing in the Lord and His promises is to have faith. In the world where everything is instantly provided, or so it seems, we don’t like to wait. And faith is a hard thing sometimes when we persistently ask God for an answer and we haven’t seen one yet after weeks, months, even years. So, what do we do when we don’t get the answer we want when we want it? We continue to believe.

How do we do that? I don’t know what works in your life, but for me, I reflect on all that God has already done and keep repeating his promises. I remind myself that God doesn’t lie and if He said it, He will do it. It’s hard sometimes to stop whining and start praising, but that is exactly what we need to do. It builds our own faith and helps others to see Jesus in us. Instead of talking to God about what you don’t have yet, thank Him for what He has already done for you. Remember the song “Count Your Blessings” and do that!

We haven’t seen death yet and don’t know what happens when we die. Yet we who are Christians believe in life after death. Why do we believe in what we cannot see? Because God said it, He promised it and He fulfills His promises. In our lifetime, we see many changes, some good and some bad. Life is like a roller coaster ride of curves, twists and hills to climb. But God is right there with us, knowing that we can make it to the end of our race because He and the heavenly host are cheering us on. They believe in us…so we should also believe in the Father to do exactly as He has said. Again, how do we believe? And again, I say, count the promises that God has made to you in your life and already brought to pass. Build your faith on the firm foundation of His Word and His actions for you in the past. Jesus said “I am the resurrection and the life.” He didn’t say that He was the resurrection for former believers, the heroes of the faith only and then stopped reaching out to people. No, He uses the present tense. Every day, we are saved from our sins. We were saved (when we accepted Christ as our Lord and Savior), we are being saved (as we walk with Him daily and believe His promises) and one day we will be saved to a new life, to live with Him eternally. Promises made, promises kept! (Politicians use this slogan to point out how good they are to the people, but the only One good who has kept all of His promises is God.)

Do you let God speak to you daily from His word? That’s where His promises are and that’s what helps you to believe. You can feed your faith by centering yourself on God’s word or you can feed your doubt by looking around at your world and all that is not right with it. Notice that the person in this scripture says he believes. What does he do just after his proclamation of belief? He worships. We need to spend time just adoring God for who He is, not just thanking Him for all He has done for us. He is the Creator of the Universe, yet He considered each of us important enough to send His Son to die for us. He is omnipotent, omnipresent, omniscient, powerful and holy. Spend some time thinking about who God is…and believe that He wants what is best for you.

Little children believe in Santa and are sad to find out that he isn’t real. Some believe in false gods and one day will face the real God who will judge them for their folly. We have the greatest gift of all…God’s love, His gift of salvation and all of His promises. So, let’s believe together that God will do what He says. He may not answer our prayer with a “yes” but He will answer with what is best for us because He is our Father who loves us. Only believe!

Creation

On By vickleaIn promises, ScriptureLeave a comment

I believe what the Bible says about God’s creating everything. I am not a proponent of combining science and the Bible and coming up with new theories about how everything came to be. I just believe what God said. After all, He is the Creator and He was the only One there at the time, so I will take Him at His word.

Many like to refute the truth of the Old Testament, saying that it is no longer relevant so people need to only pay attention to what is in the New Testament. Really? ALL of God’s Word is relevant and necessary if we want to truly get to know Him. But for those who need verses from the New Testament that point to God as Creator, there are many.

Not only did God create everything to begin with, He puts the people in power who are on thrones or even in the Capitol building. It is hard for me to grasp that, but I think of it as, “God put them there for this season and He will be the One to remove them when that season is over.” We were created “through Him” but notice that we were also created “for Him.” We were created to have a relationship with God and it is to our detriment that we turn away and choose not to do so.

Scientists want to prove everything with things that they can explain with math formulas and experiments and observation. We Christians, however, know that understanding that God formed everything is by faith. We can’t experiment with faith or come up with a good math formula that replicates it. There are all kinds of physics laws, but one I remember from long ago is that matter can neither be created nor destroyed. I suppose that is true when man tries to create something from nothing or totally destroy something so that it no longer exists. But God created the laws of the Universe and He doesn’t have to operate within their boundaries. He created something from nothing and He can also totally destroy things so that they no longer exist. If you don’t believe me, read Genesis 1 and then turn to the story of Sodom and Gomorrah in Genesis 19. The towns were there and then they weren’t, due to their great sin. We can trust that God’s Word is always true and that He is in control of all that He has made. What we cannot trust is mankind’s idea of putting God in a box and commanding Him to stay there until they are ready to let Him out or need Him for something. God is not the genie in the bottle, ready to appear when we want Him to. He is always there, always looking, always listening, and ever waiting for us to accept Him as not only our Creator but also our Savior.

It amazes me that the God who made everything knew we would need a Savior and planned for Jesus and our redemption from the beginning. Read Genesis 3:15 and see the plan’s beginning. In this month in which we celebrate the Resurrection, we can also see the evidence of new life as flowers and trees bud and blossom. They are the visible representation of the new life that God has for us if we just accept it.

Creation was God’s plan. How did He do it? I don’t know and I don’t have to know because I have the faith to believe that He said it and that makes it true.

Believing God

On By vickleaIn promises, Scripture, testimony4 Comments

I say that I have faith, but I have to confess that sometimes my belief wavers. I have faith that God loves me, sent His Son to die for me and that one day I will go to heaven to be with Him forever.

But when we are barreling down the highway at seventy miles an hour, my heart pounds and I am barely able to keep my eyes open when the trucks pass us. That is when my belief wavers. Is God really big enough and powerful enough to keep me safe in those situations? How about when my husband goes to visit his brother and I am all alone in the middle of the big woods? Every little sound sends me scurrying to turn a light on and to cuddle my cat. What happened to my belief then? Is God with me in the scary times, too? Or when one of my children or grandchildren is facing a battle against an injury or disease? How big is my belief then?

I came to understand this morning while reading my devotional that Abraham had faith, but he also still had doubts. God told him that he would become a great nation and Abraham’s response was that his servant would be inheriting everything. That sounds a lot like doubt to me. But God assured him that the son that he himself had with Sarah would begin a lineage that would bless the whole world.

I don’t often, maybe ever, get such an assurance from God about His promises, not audibly anyway. But I do read His Word daily and glean a lot of promises from that. Last time we were racing down the highway so fast that my heart started pounding, I remembered Ps. 121: 7-8, a verse that I memorized last month. “The Lord will keep you from all evil; He will keep your life. The Lord will keep your going out and your coming in from this time forth and forevermore.” Thus, the Lord really did speak to me. My heart slowed down, my breathing became normal again, and I was able to have a conversation with my husband. That may not sound very amazing to you, but it really was to me!

I am learning that my belief is in direct proportion to the word that I have hidden in my heart and that I can access whenever I need it. I am on week 14 of memorizing a scripture verse each week. It’s not a great accomplishment, but I am sticking to the plan and the plan is a good one. At least, it has been for me. My verse for this week is Isaiah 46:4. “Even to your old age and gray hairs I am He, I am He who will sustain you. I have made you and I will carry you, I will sustain you and I will rescue you.” That’s quite a promise when my bones are creaking and each movement feels like the floor is coming up to greet me. God is taking care of me every minute that I am still on earth, and I am grateful for that assurance.

Do you have any favorite verses that help you to believe when times get hard? Or even when things are regular but not exactly the way you wish they could be? Please share in the comments.

Speaking of comments, I just discovered that many of you have been commenting and I didn’t see them until yesterday when I accessed Word Press online instead of on the app. I am not sure why that is, but I went to the comments section online and forty-seven comments popped up. I will try to do better about checking that so I can respond. I sincerely appreciate your kind words, your advice, and your friendship.

I will leave you with the scripture verse that began my journey of memorizing, Isaiah 43:2: “When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; When you walk through fire, you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you.”

Have a blessed day, filled with awe, wonder and belief!

God’s Will

On By vickleaIn Scripture, testimony, YouVersion App2 Comments

Knowing God is trusting God to do what is best for all, not just for me. I confess that there have been many times when I did not understand God’s will and why things were happening. My trust faltered, and in my weakness, I would find myself crying out to God and asking for reassurance that He is still in control. One such time was when our daughter miscarried when she was almost seven months pregnant. We had just spent a week together in a cabin, enjoying games, outings, food and fellowship with her and her family. The last days we were there, Hope stayed in bed, saying she wasn’t feeling well and just needed to rest. When she and the family left, she told me that she felt fine and was eager to get the sonogram done early that week that had been scheduled for a while already. My husband and I were still at the cabin, this time with our son and his family taking their turn with us. Then the phone call came. Hope was sobbing and I could barely understand her words. But they became plain soon enough, “She’s gone. The baby died.” I don’t know if I have ever felt such heartbreak before. Our beloved daughter was feeling so lost, and we were well over a day’s travel away. We hastily explained to Scott what had happened, packed up and went home (three hours away) and then re-packed and headed to Pennsylvania, praying for God to be with Hope and Aaron and the four children as they grieved. When we arrived the next day, we found that the obstetrician had Hope go through labor and give birth to the deceased infant. Tessa was perfectly formed, but tiny. Tests showed that she had a tumor and died from it. The family was in shock and inconsolable. My lighthearted and faith-filled daughter was silent and sad. My grandchildren didn’t understand how such a tragedy was possible. We went through the days following the loss trying to help Hope cope with the loss and to choose to move on. She was convinced that this was her last baby and she had lost her. Tessa Serenity was never going to walk the earth. I took walks with the younger children around their large property and we talked about where Tessa was now…in the arms of the Lord and happy to be there. But the sadness prevailed. Hope mustered her belief in a good God the best that she could and went on with life. Two summers later, we met at a shopping center on our way to the beach for a trip together again. I had kind of dreaded the trip because the last time we had been together for a vacation had ended in such heartache. When Hope got out of the car, she had on a shirt with a rainbow that said something like, “God keeps His promises.” She then told us, right there in the parking lot, that she was pregnant and that this baby was a “rainbow baby”, a gift after the loss of a beloved child. We cried together and rejoiced in God’s goodness. Less than five months later, little Teagan Noelle was born. I guess I should add here that Hope and Aaron name all of their children with the letter T and online she calls her children T1, T2, etc. The latest, little Teagan, is not called by a number because it was too difficult to skip the number 5 that belonged to Tessa and Teagan and the other kids didn’t understand the number 6. So Teagan became “sweet Tea” and that’s her nickname to this day. She knows that she has a sister waiting for her in heaven who was to be number five. And we all praise God for the blessing that she is. She just turned eight, a precocious and loving child who is the delight of all in her family. So why did Tessa have to leave this life so early? I don’t know and probably never will. But these events led me to lean hard into God and to trust His sovereignty even when I don’t understand it.

From the YouVersion Bible App Devotional, “Daily Power by Craig Groeschel, Day 4”

Years ago my wife Amy’s brother, David, was very sick. He was in the hospital, so we had everyone we knew praying for him—for his health, for healing, for a full recovery. For weeks and weeks, we prayed and prayed. But after several months, God healed David in a way we hadn’t planned. My brother-in-law, who was only thirty-four, left this earth and joined God in heaven.

My wife lost her only brother. My in-laws lost their only son. We were devastated and it was hard not to wonder, “Where was God in that? Why did we have to lose David?”

I helped do the funeral, and I invited people to know the Jesus who had changed David’s life and set him free from the bondage of a dark past. That day so many people said yes and invited Christ into their hearts, including Uncle Blue, a great guy and one of our family’s favorite people.

Recently Amy and I were reflecting on the positive ripple effect we could see in so many lives—all because God did not answer our prayer the way we wanted. “Would you trade everything that’s happened to get your brother back?” I asked. Without hesitating, she said, “No way. What God has done through our loss is greater than anything I could imagine.”

God’s will matters in the midst of our prayers. You don’t always get what you want when you want it. But you can always walk by faith and trust in God’s will.

Power Lift: Dear God, there’s so much I don’t understand about your ways. Today help me walk by faith and not by sight, trusting in your perfect and holy plan for my life.

Jesus’s prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane should be our prayer daily.

Spiritual Amnesia

On By vickleaIn Scripture, Song, Video, YouVersion App1 Comment

From the YouVersion Bible App, “A God Who Is Faithful”, Day 4

A History of Faithfulness

The audience for this psalm is clear: “the descendants of Abraham, his chosen ones, the children of Jacob” (v. 6). The people of God were to hear and heed these words.

The people of Israel seemed to have suffered from spiritual amnesia. So, beginning with Abraham, the psalmist recounted the faithfulness of God over the span of 40 verses. The God of Israel allowed no one to oppress them (vv. 14 – 15). The word of the Lord was fulfilled in the rise of Joseph (vv. 17 – 22). The Lord made his people fruitful, more numerous than their foes (v. 24). When they were enslaved, God sent Moses (v. 26).

While the psalm lists various names, God proves to be the main character. It was God who powerfully delivered them from Pharaoh (vv. 27 – 38). Though this psalm includes only highlights from Israel’s history, the point is clear: nothing God purposed has failed.

The psalmist began with Abraham. Yet, Jesus would assert plainly in the Gospel of John, “Before Abraham was born, I am” (Jn 8:58). The epicenter of God’s faithfulness not only preceded the father of Israel, all God’s promises eventually find their “Yes” in him (2Co 1:20). God remembers his covenant; God’s people remember his wonders (Ps 105:5 – 11).

Today’s Prayer:

Jesus, I don’t ever want to suffer from spiritual amnesia. Help me to always remember everything that you’ve done for me and all that you’ve promised to do. Amen.

My Thoughts

Constantly reminding ourselves of what God has done for us in the past helps us to have hope and faith in the present and the future. Psalm 105 is like a list of things God did for the Israelites, a reminder of His presence and His blessing. Reading the Bible helps me remember, too. I have notes to myself of prayers I have said at particular times with certain verses as parts of my prayer. And I note what I was praying for and recall the answer. I don’t do it often enough, but I also keep a journal of God’s promises made and kept.

I wish we didn’t have to use reminders, that it just came naturally to remember all that God has done for us. But I find that when I am in the pits of despair, I am whining so much that I forget what God has done and will do if I will just let go and listen. In real life, it’s sometimes hard to remember but the devotional today was all about remembering and telling others about what God has done so that they can have their faith built up, too.

It Is No Secret Hymn Story and Lyrics

Hesitate or Trust?

On By vickleaIn Scripture, YouVersion AppLeave a comment

From the YouVersion Bible App Devotional, “Reconnection”

Day 3: Trust

Let’s talk about hesitation for a minute. Without trust in God and his promises, we end up hesitating so much more, right? We hesitate and wait when we should be trusting and moving. Sometimes I wonder how many of Jesus’ disciples would have dropped their nets and followed him if they’d been able to check him out on Instagram before he showed up. Would they have even gone out to hear him speak if they’d watched all his YouTube sermons and read the negative comments left by people who critique sermons full-time? 

Hesitation is a consequence of believing we are in control. When it comes to God, since we have so many answers at our fingertips in Google, we crave more tangible assurance of God and his ways. And when the proof isn’t evident and doesn’t show up right away, what do we do? We start grasping at control to give us a false sense of safety. And our phones provide the means of that control. But while we’re waiting for all the answers we need to fall into place or endlessly researching the bottomless pit of information and opinions that is the internet, we end up frozen. Not moving. Not risking. Waiting for blessed assurance before we take one step toward where we were supposed to be going in faith a long time ago. . . . 

If you’ve been waiting for “the right time” to trust God and do the next thing, my question to you is, how much time are you spending in his Word versus your phone? Listen, I am the king of spending time with my phone, so I ask the question with no judgment. However, I do ask it with plenty of experience, and here’s why: when we aren’t connected to the world 24-7, we actually have to exist in a place of trust.

Prayer 

Father, I have often tried to have control over things that should only be in your hands. Please forgive me for not trusting you, and please prompt me to turn to you in all things. Amen.

My Thoughts

The author of the devotional is spot-on about my unending desire to control and to know what I want to know instantly. I use a search engine a lot, to check on meds and their side effect, to look up possible places to stay when we travel, even to check what the “hottest” gifts will be in case I want to purchase one before they are sold out. I had never thought of it before, but I can’t do a search on the reality of God. He is who He says He is and no search engine can convince me of that. It’s a heart thing. So, instead of hesitating and not moving when God tells me to, I need to trust and do what He says. I don’t think that there is any manmade search engine that has the Holy Spirit as its source, so trust won’t come from searching for it on a device. Trust comes from action, from doing the last thing God said to do and moving on to the next thing and the thing after that. I find when I am stuck in a rut and not moving closer to God, it’s because I am not trusting Him to go ahead of me and prepare the way. I want to control and He has control, so there is no contest about who will ultimately win that battle. The truth is that there should never be a battle between hesitating and moving forward with trust. I am not at the place where I trust all the time, without question or hesitation, but I will say that I am making progress, at least sometimes. I am more likely to hear that small voice say, “Trust” these days than I am to hear the other voice that says, “Does God really want you to do this?” I would like to say that I have arrived, but I am a work in progress.

Believe Your Beliefs

On By vickleaIn Scripture, YouVersion App1 Comment

www.bible.com/reading-plans/1201/day/37

It doesn’t do a lot of good to just say you trust God and then doubt that He is taking care of all of the situations that come up in your life. It is easy to fall into the trap of doubting and then getting attacked by Satan’s fiery darts because the doubt left the door open. Keeping on the shield of faith is essential to Christian living. Every time I think of the possibility of a certain candidate being elected and the havoc that will create, I cringe and start to doubt. Then, I stop myself and tell myself that no matter who is in the Oval Office, God is still on His throne. Doubts are alive and well…but so is faith. Which will you choose?

Weary of the Battle

On By vickleaIn Scripture, YouVersion App1 Comment

www.bible.com/reading-plans/1201/day/1

I confess that there are days when I just want to stay in bed, pull the covers up over my head and snuggle down, just ignoring my responsibilities and what is going on in the world. I don’t turn on the news because it’s not new and it’s rarely fair, balanced and accurate. I don’t listen to podcasters spouting their interpretation of the news, for the same reason. However, I live with a man who listens to all news, all the time and who reports to me gleefully and repeatedly throughout the day about what he heard and how he interprets it. The world is broken. The news is mostly a lie. And my husband is annoying, but I am holding on to the hope that one day God will make everything right. Does my breathing quicken and my heart speed up when my husband gives me his latest report? Unfortunately, yes, it does. Even when I tell him honestly that the news he is reporting is stressing me, he continues to report. After all, who else is going to listen to his 16 hour a day broadcast? So, I continue to fight the battle of the war of what is right (patience with my husband’s enthusiasm for the news) and what is wrong (losing my temper and telling him to go away). This is one example of a spiritual battle that I fight daily, but there are many others. Satan would love to destroy our marriage of fifty one years with constant disagreements like this one. But we have made a commitment to love each other, which means putting up with the differences we have and forgiving each other when an offense occurs. It must make Satan cringe when we go to bed together again each evening, not angry and not ready to “throw in the towel” on our relationship. The battle is real…but so is God. And since I know that God wins in the end, I will just keep fighting on His team, with the faith and assurance that this earthly battle will not last forever. (And praying that there are no newscasts in Heaven, of course.)

Your Attitude Makes a Difference

On By vickleaIn Scripture, YouVersion App1 Comment

www.bible.com/reading-plans/26293/day/4

When I was teaching in a public school, I had a lot of grumpy students, particularly in my morning classes. They didn’t want to be out of bed, in school or in my class. My advice to them, with a smile on my face, was to “check the attitude at the door and expect good things.” How many times have I had to give that same self-talk to myself? Challenges with finances? Time to check my attitude. Health issues? Time to check my attitude. Not only does having the right mindset help me to turn my faith towards God and away from the problem, but it also shows others who are watching and listening a witness for how they can face challenges. No one may ever listen to your testimony about Christ and how He has changed your life from the inside out, but they will see the evidence of His work in you every time you check your attitude and tackle challenges with faith in the God who will see you through.

Follow God Past Your Understanding

On By vickleaIn Scripture, YouVersion App2 Comments

www.bible.com/reading-plans/46391/day/2

With our finite minds, it is hard for us to understand when hard times come and God seems silent. He isn’t silent ever; rather, I think He is waiting for us to quiet our own hearts and minds so that we can hear His voice directing us. There is so much more to what is going on in our lives than what we can see. But our spiritual eyes have to be opened to appreciate God’s working things out for us. Thus begins the journey of faith and trust.