6 INSIGHTS TO MAKE FAITH WORK FOR YOU

Are you are facing a situation in which the odds are stacked against you?

You may be facing a diagnosis of cancer, a financial downturn, a lost job, or a broken relationship. Maybe you’re an evacuee from Fort McMurray.

You want to believe you can overcome your circumstances but truth be told you feel overcome by your circumstances.

What Do You Do?

There are numerous incidences from history where people faced intimidating odds and overcame them through faith. Here’s where the Bible can be a practical help. There are stories of people like you who used faith in God to succeed.

Three such people are referred to in Hebrews 11:29-31:

1. Moses: A hostile enemy army is behind you and an uncrossable sea is in front of you. Can you say, “between a rock and a hard place?” The Bible records, “by faith” the Red Sea parted and 1,000,000 plus people passed through on dry ground.

2. Joshua: An impregnable city stands in the way of your progress. Again, the Bible records, “by faith” the impregnable walls of Jericho fell after 7 days of merely marching by a non-threatening Jewish militia.

3. Rahab: A prostitute becomes the trusted agent to protect an advance team of Israeli spies. She aligned herself with an upstart nation because she believed their God was the Almighty God. She made her choice “by faith.”

An impassable sea…impregnable walls…an improbable choice. In each case “faith in God” was the factor that brought victory.

What Is Faith And How Do You Use It?

1. Faith is not the absence of unbelief.

2. Faith is a mix of belief and unbelief and choosing to act on the belief portion. Your belief may feel as tiny as “a mustard seed.”

3. Faith is leverage. Using even a small amount of faith can move a mountain.

4. Faith demands action. This is the most important part of faith.

5. The action required may not have intrinsic power but when used it will produce desirable results.

Moses was told to stretch out his staff over the Red Sea. What good would that do with an enemy army bearing down on one side and a fearful people wanting to surrender on the other?

Joshua was told to march around the walls of Jericho for 7 days and then blow horns and shout. That’s a good strategy for cheerleaders at a sports event but it has very little intrinsic military value.

Rahab was to put a scarlet cord in her window to protect her against an invading army. It takes faith to trust your life to a piece of ribbon.

In 2003 our congregation purchased 38 acres of land in an undeveloped area with money we had to borrow as the first step in a direction God was leading us. Within a year, the debt was paid off and we had money in the bank. 11 years later North Pointe has seen hundreds of people come to faith in Jesus, from a debt free facility that is a platform of hope.

Do we recommend going into debt as a strategy for everyone? No. No more than we would recommend stretching out a rod or marching around walls or flying a red ribbon.  It was what we needed to do at the time in faith.

What action do you need to take today as an expression of faith?

6. Faith specializes in things thought impossible. God will do what no other power can do for you.

“Where God is a spider’s web is as a stone wall. Where God is not, a stone wall is as a spider’s web.”

Faith beats the odds.

APPLICATION: Which insight stands out the most to you?

I write to inspire people to be real, grow an authentic faith in Jesus, enjoy healthy relationships and discover their life purpose. If this material is helpful to you, please follow me.

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