Every
believer needs to check out the power center of life as we begin this new year.
What will keep you going when things get a little rough, or disappointment sets
in, or you hit that proverbial brick wall? Will you be depending upon human
resources you can control or divine assistance which you can neither control of
even understand?
When I
decided to become a Christian minister after my freshman year in college, my
father was both proud and pleased. He also told me I needed to consider what
kind of college major I would have since I would need something “practical” to
fall back on. He was a great believer in the old saying, “Put your faith in
God, my boy, but keep your powder dry.”
You might
call this practical faith. You can say you depend upon God for all you need,
but just in case he doesn’t come through, you have Plan B upon which you can
fall back. It is a faith that sounds good, but is focused as much upon human
strength and ingenuity as it is upon the providence of God.
What worked
for you last year? Did God fail you in the plans you made? Did you ask him what
he thought of your plans before you initiated them? Did you always have your
eye on Plan B just in case God didn’t do what you expected?
Faith has
power when it is seen as a tool of God rather than our way to manipulate God
into doing what we want. Our faith is a measure of our relationship with God.
He has little regard for our Plan B’s. He wants to know how much faith we place
in him even when we cannot see him in action.
Pro
3:3 Never let go of loyalty and faithfulness.
Tie them around your neck; write them on your heart.
Pro
3:4 If you do this, both God and people
will be pleased with you.
Pro
3:5 Trust in the LORD with all your
heart. Never rely on what you think you know.
Pro 3:6 Remember the LORD in everything
you do, and he will show you the right way.
Faith is
critical to living the Christ-centered life. The writer of these words from
Proverbs urged his readers to make these qualities of loyalty (love,
lovingkindness) and faithfulness such an integral part of our lives they would
shape our way of thinking and be apparent to anyone who met us.
Verses four
and five are the most familiar as they speak of trust (faith) in God and being
willing to turn everything over to him. The preceding two verses should become
just as familiar as they show the foundation for a trusting relationship. God
is a part of our lives.
When Jesus
taught the importance and power of faith, he used an illustration that revealed
not how much faith was needed, but how powerful faith could be even in its
smallest form.
Luk
17:5 The apostles said to the Lord,
"Make our faith greater."
Luk
17:6 The Lord answered, "If you had
faith as big as a mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, 'Pull
yourself up by the roots and plant yourself in the sea!' and it would obey you.
In future
days the faith of the apostles would be revealed. After a mission trip they
would report they had performed cures and cast out demons. After the ascension
of Jesus back to the glory of heaven, the apostles would experience an
expansion of that power as they practiced their faith in Christ through the
indwelling Holy Spirit.
On a wall in
our home there is a plaque with the saying, “Faith makes things possible, not
easy.” Living through whatever 2015 may bring will be possible with faith. Some
may always try to have a Plan B. Faith says that is not necessary. In fact it
can hinder what God has in mind for you. As an individual, as a church,
discover what even a little faith can do.
