Faith can be tricky, but I promise you it doesn’t have to be! It can be simple once you understand how the Bible explains faith! Everything God commands us to do, in reality, is simple, it is us who make it complicated because we want to fit our wants and desires into God’s plan. However, it doesn’t work like that, it’s either God’s plan or your plan, you can’t have both. And ultimately faith is going with God’s plan and forsaking yours. So, how can you confidently live by faith and not by sight?
Well, a great place to start is knowing all the fundamentals that make faith work and strengthen your overall faith! That is what we’re getting into today so let’s get started!
Being Fully Convinced / Not Wavering
I can’t tell you how many times I backtracked on my faith or wavered because of unbelief. It can actually be quite easy because it is easy to fall into what we see rather than what we know from the Word of God. There are lots of people who speak unbelief around us, think we’re crazy, and just don’t understand. However, we can’t let that stop us from believing and trusting in God. Romans 4:20 says about Abraham that, “he did not waver at the promise of God through unbelief, but was strengthened in faith, giving glory to God, being fully convinced that what He had promised He was also able to perform”. This verse has a lot concerning faith so let’s dive in! Abraham did not let unbelief creep its way into his spirit concerning the promise of God. Yes, he was old, Sarah was old, and having a child seemed desolate but Abraham didn’t let that faze him. He was convinced of the promise of God, and what is being convinced? Being convinced is more than believing, it’s knowing that God is going to come through. It’s being able to see the opposite of the promise and still have confidence that the promise is coming. That is being convinced, it’s being able to call yourself the father of many nations while not having one child, that is convinced! Can you confidently say you are convinced of the promise of God or are there doubts? When you are convinced that God is coming through for you, there is no fear, no doubt, no worry, or anxiety, you are confident and there is peace. When you are fully convinced that God is able to perform His promise to you, you will have overwhelming peace. That is the major and number one sign that you have confidence in God and in your faith, having peace. If you’re feeling anxious, afraid, or having doubts then you don’t fully trust God nor are fully convinced. So examine your faith today and ask yourself how much peace do I have concerning the promise of God?
Speak!
Speaking will truly reveal whether you actually believe in God’s promise or not. The way you talk is a tell-tale sign of what you’re actually believing. For instance, if God said you’re going to be healed but all you talk about is the pain you feel in your body or how sick you are, it reveals, that you don’t really have faith that God is going to heal you. 2nd Corinthians 4:13 says, “and since we have the same spirit of faith (Jesus’s faith), according to what is written, “I believed and therefore I spoke,” we also believe and therefore speak”. So, the Bible says that when you believe something you speak it! I know it can be hard, especially around unbelievers, but God told me it’s better to not speak at all than to speak unbelief. Your words bring forth your reality, so think of it this way, if you don’t want it to happen, don’t say it. If you want it to happen, say it! Additionally, when you are fully convinced of something, you begin to talk about it. Abraham was fully convinced he was going to have a child, so he started calling himself the father of many nations after God changed his name. He didn’t give God pushback about the name change because he was convinced of the promise! He knew God was able so his words followed suit.
Moreover, Jesus says in Mark 11:22-23, “have faith in God, for assuredly I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘be removed and be cast into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done he will have whatever he says”. Jesus clearly lets us know that we will have what we say, so being mindful of your words is pivotal when it comes to faith. You don’t want to say anything that comes against what you’re believing for. Furthermore, if you’re believing for a prayer to be answered, do not say anything that comes against your prayer. The key thing about your words becoming reality, especially when it concerns your faith, is getting rid of all doubt. Jesus says you will have what you say if you do not doubt! So when you speak faith, all fear and doubt should leave, you should feel peace when you’re speaking in faith and not worry. When there’s no doubt that is an indicator that you are fully convinced and when you’re fully convinced, you will see the promise of God come to pass. Let’s put it this way, Jesus basically said, “whoever says to this mountain be removed and be cast into the sea and does not doubt in his heart and is fully convinced those things he says will be done, he will have what he says!”
Being fully convinced is key! This means there’s no doubt, there’s no fear and worry about the promise, so next time you are speaking in faith check for that! And even when there is still doubt present, say the right things until the right feelings come, you’ll never have what you don’t talk about. How do you get the confidence to speak in faith and be fully convinced it’ll come to pass? That’s easy, dive into the Word!
Standing on the Word
In order to be fully convinced and speak faith-filled words without doubt and fear, you must stand on the Word of God! You cannot base your faith on people or circumstances, it must be on the Word! Romans 10:17 says, “faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God”, so you cannot grow in your faith if you’re never in the Bible or listening to Word-filled sermons. So, if you find yourself lacking in reading or not being in church listening to the spoken Word, your faith can’t accomplish much. There are so many great examples of faith in the Bible and God’s word overall is a great encourager, it would be stupid to think you can have strong faith without the Bible. The Word is vital to building faith! God will direct you where to go, to what scriptures and stories will strengthen your faith the most, so I encourage you to crack open your Bible and hear by the Word of God! God gave us His Word for this very reason! To build faith and see Him work wonders in our lives.
Most people fail in faith because they have no scriptures to stand on, they stand on experiences, people, circumstances, etc. So, what I want you to do is gather scriptures that align with what you’re believing for and stand on it. Speak those scriptures every day and remind God of His Word. Isaiah 43:26 says, “Put Me in remembrance; let us contend together, state your case”. So you have to petition your faith to God, and the best way to do that is by saying scriptures. For example, you can say, “God, Your Word says in 1 Peter 2:24 by His stripes I was healed, so I am expecting this sickness to leave my body immediately”. This doesn’t have to just be for sickness but it can be for anything, so stand on your scriptures of choice, remind God of it, and He will bring it to pass. Isaiah 55:11 says, “so shall My Word be that goes forth from My mouth; it shall not return to Me void, but it shall accomplish what I please and it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it”. God wants His word to prosper and do what He sent it to do. So, don’t hesitate when it comes to speaking God’s Word back to Him. He sent His word to heal us, prosper us, free and deliver us, love us, and more! The Bible is full of promises, so pick a few and stand on them! When God’s word is involved, your faith will never fail. Isaiah 40:8 says, “the grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God stands forever”. So you can have confidence in your faith when you involve God’s word. Everything else in this world passes away, but God’s word never will, and that is how you know your promise will come to pass!
This is just part one, but stay tuned next week for part two where we get into praise, prayer, believing in your faith, and reminding yourself of God’s character! All God wants is to see His Word come to pass in our lives but that cannot be done without faith! So take these pointers and start working them into your faith journey! I hoped this helped and God bless!
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