Difficult, Freeing, Exhilarating Faith

May 13 (2 Corinthians 5:7)

For we walk by faith, not by sight.  (ESV)

Do you realize how difficult it is to walk by faith and not by sight?  You certainly do if you’ve ever tried it.  We cannot see God, but we have faith in Him.  His ways are not our ways, but we have faith that His ways are right.  We will experience suffering, but we have faith because Jesus said He overcame it all.  It is no wonder that people look at us and say, “Are you kidding?”

Let’s be clear.  Everything we do in our daily existence is based on our physical sensations.  We see a line of traffic and take a different route.  We hear about an interesting book and go to buy it.  We smell bacon frying and know the day is off to a good start.  Yet everything about our relationship with God is based on something else.  As the writer of Hebrews 11:1 puts it, “Faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.”  It is assurance.  It is conviction.  It is not namby-pamby, wishful thinking, but because it has nothing to do with our physical senses, which form the basis for how we interact with every other aspect of our lives, faith is a different way of knowing, and a difficult one.

Yet faith in God is the single most freeing force in the world!  Think about something that scares you, something that just terrifies the living daylights out of you.  Maybe it is standing on the diving board and looking into water that seems about a thousand feet away.  Maybe it is facing a job decision or the prospect of losing a job.  Picture that thing that gives you the sweats.  Now, what if you didn’t have to rely on your senses?  What if all the things that terrify you because you have seen them or heard about them or experienced them in some way just weren’t there?  What if you could ignore all that?  Would that not be the most exhilarating feeling in the world?  That, my friends, is faith.

Jesus, whenever You call me, I look around at the wind and waves the way Peter did and start to sink.  Remember that I am dust, Jesus, and prone to fear and weakness.  Help me to strengthen my faith so that I may operate more by it and less by my physical senses, for I truly do believe in You.  Amen.

Copyright © 2018 by Steven R. Perkins

November 2 (Galatians 3:3)

Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh?  (ESV)

If you have grown up knowing how to swing a bat, hit a golf ball, or perform any other athletic feat, only to have a coach or trainer instruct you in a new and better way, two things will happen.  You will experience success with your new method and at first, and then you will start to perform poorly and not know why.  You may find yourself frustrated, but your coach will quickly spot the problem.  You have reverted to your old way of doing things.

This is true of anything, including our walk in faith.  Our natural tendency is to rely on our own strength.  We hear the call of Jesus and begin to walk by faith.  We are in step with the Holy Spirit, and then all of a sudden, we find ourselves weak, exhausted, and frustrated from trying to move mountains with our own two hands.  We have gone back to living life on our own terms.

Or maybe I am the only one who does this.  I will have days where it seems I am floating, just flowing through life in the smooth grace of God, and the next moment I am swinging away like King Kong swatting at the planes that buzzed his head.   Oh, you, too?

Jesus, I really do not want to live by my strength, which is nothing more than weakness compared with the power of Your Spirit living within me.  Help me to slow down and get back in step with the Holy Spirit, Who guides me as You promised He would.  Amen.

Copyright © 2014 by Steven R. Perkins