There are seasons in which we find ourselves where we can breeze through each day with little or no thought of what size faith we have. Other seasons seem to expose how puny our faith can be, or if your one of the "faithful" ones, "what big muscles you have".
The thing about faith is that all of us are given a measure of faith, but not all portions are equal.
Let me give you an example. When my kids were little I was much smaller as well. So when they asked me to sit on one of their little benches or chairs to join them for a party I would pull the chair up and sit down without hesitation. Now that I am a full figured man, uh huh, I would look at that chair and try to calculate what it might hold and then if I proceeded to sit it would be ever so cautiously and stages of transferring my weight from my own limbs to the weakening, creaking, folding legs of a chair not designed for such a task.
I realize this is a poor illustration in regards to our spiritual faith, but let me tell you I sure feel better getting that off my chest.
Seriously speaking, to those who have placed their faith in Christ and would call themselves Christians, not by the worlds definition but by scriptures, we are consistently reminded that fear is an opponent of faith.
Scripture does say that the fear of God is the beginning of wisdom, and that fearing God is a properly placed type of fear but scripture also teaches us that you were not created with a spirit of fear, and we are told that we should not fear man but He who can not only destroy the body but the soul as well.
You see the clearer we understand faith the more we strive to observe it and in a confusing sort of way our fears give us opportunity to grow in faith. When the doctor brings in bad news, when the spouse of 10 years says they are done, when you find drugs or alcohol in your students bag, when your office lets you go with no warning, these things can cause a great amount of fear. Usually fear of the unknown, the loss of familiar, a place where if we are honest we had become complacent and passive. Or in another way of looking at it, a potential for God to grow us when the enemy finds a way to attack where he knows its going to hurt. The outcome is our understanding of just how fragile our faith can be and just how worthy God is. When we begin to doubt if it will be ok, God somehow shows us that it will be ok because the reward to faithfulness is a renewed and refreshed love for God and assurance that He cares about the smallest of things.
So the next time things get challenging and you begin to question if God is with you, read your Bible and you won't get very far before you see the promise of a loving God who cares for you deeply. Of course reading your Bible daily, praying and meeting regularly in fellowship with other believers are instrumental to a healthy faith as well. Give it a try, you'll be glad you did.
Till next time.
P.M.
