Living by Faith

I find living by faith hard to do.

I’m not talking about getting saved by faith. That’s easy.

I remember that first step I took when I turned to the Lord for salvation.

It was like jumping off a cliff and hoping He’d catch me. It was a little scary but I had no other choice. I was headed to hell because of my sin but Jesus died on a cross to pay the price for my sin. Then He’d risen from the dead on top of that! Done deal. I was on that train as fast as I could jump!

But living by faith is a whole other story.

Does God care about who I date? Will He really provide for that shirt I think I need? How much is it my job to make things happen or do I just sit back and watch Him do it?

Why is it so hard to take that jump off the cliff every morning into the arms of the waiting Savior?

I believe there are 5 areas that every Christian struggles with when it comes to living daily by faith.

Here they are:

1. That He forgives me when I sin. It’s easy to believe that God forgives me when I realize that I’m a sinner for the first time. But what about when I fall into that same sin for the 7th time in a row? How about when I still do it 20 years later? Does God still forgive me? Or have I used up all my chances. Jesus addressed this very issue when He told Peter that we ought to forgive each other 70×7 times. In other words – forgiveness never stops!  Christ’s death on the cross paid for all of the sin you will ever commit. Do you believe it?

2. That He answers me when I pray. It’s hard to believe that God cares about every little one of my prayer requests. Yet He knows every hair on my head! That’s pretty incredible. Hey have you stopped praying because you’ve stopped believing that God will answer? I’ve been tempted to do this so many times. The Bible says that the prayer of a righteous man avails much. Do you believe it?

3. That the waiting will end. It’s hard to wait. I know that. I’m the most impatient person in the world. But it’s even harder to wait when there’s no sign of things letting up in sight. It’s easy to lose hope. One of my favorite verses in the Bible is in Psalms 27:13. It says “I would have lost heart unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living”. He’s talking about believing that that difficult circumstance will end someday soon – here on this earth! Do you believe it?

4. That He loves me when I fail. I fail so often and so badly. I know it. Those who know me best know it. And believe me, God knows it. I also tend to be extremely critical of myself and expect so much of myself. I get caught in these cycles of believing that God loves me more when I’m “good”. Do you know what I’m talking about? If I read my Bible and pray and tell others about Jesus, then God must be happy with me. But if I’m having a bad day, and I lose my temper or drive too fast in a school zone, then God won’t answer my prayer requests as quickly. If you’re like me you’re believing a lie. God’s love is steadfast and unconditional.It doesn’t rest in my performance but in His perfect character. Do you believe it?

5. That it will be worth it all someday. Nothing is worse than working really hard and not being sure if anyone notices or cares. As a single person who works in the service industry (ER and ministry), I tend to feel like I give out a lot more than I get back. Half the time that’s not true, but it’s easy to get on a pity party train. I need verses like Hebrews 6:19 and I Corinthians 15:58 that remind me that my labor is not in vain in the Lord. It will be worth it all. Do you believe it?

So….getting saved by faith: easy.

But how’s living by faith going for you?

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