Living Out My Faith

 "For by grace are ye saved through faith;" Ephesians 2:8a

"And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me." 

2 Corinthians 12:9

Sometimes our faith is just mechanical prayers. Sometimes our faith is just quoting favorite verses in time of need.  But when was the last time we actually lived out our faith?

My pastor said something the other night as he was preaching and the Holy Spirit smote my heart.  He reminded me that, yes, we are saved by faith, but do we live it out? I had to be honest with myself; I don't.

It's easy to encourage others to live by faith, but it's not so easy to do ourselves.

My son and his family have been visiting us this week, and before they arrived, I determined in my heart that I was not going to allow my chronic illness to keep me on the sidelines of activity.  I was going to step out in faith and live out my faith.  How did I do it?  I trusted in a promise of God.  Instead of just quoting 2 Corinthians, I claimed it; I allowed His strength to be made perfect in weakness and I allowed the power of Christ to rest upon me.  It was life-changing!  When I stepped out in faith, trusting in what God said He would do, He kept His promise.  The result?  My faith grew.  My trust grew.  So, I did it again the next day, and guess what?  God kept His promise and my faith grew even more!

Today is a new day.  I am determined to step out in faith, claim a promise of God and then LIVE IT!  

Friend, put action behind your faith...

    and live faith...

        it will change your life...

            But that's just me!

  

Reconciled

 "To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation." 2 Corinthians 5:19

For over a month, my husband and I could not reconcile our checkbook.  We knew the dollar amount that was off: our Cable payment.  Our bank posted the payment, but the cable company had not accepted the payment.  It was irritating.  We kept wondering why they would not accept the payment because this method of payment was set up as an Autopayment.  So, yesterday, my husband decided to go speak with a Bank Teller to ask what the problem was.  According to the Bank Teller, there was nothing wrong; the payment was made and it had been posted.  My husband graciously pointed out that even though it had been posted, the dollar amount had not been subtracted from the available balance in our checking account.  Again, the Teller said everything looked good.  So, we decided to go over to the Cable company and point out to them that our payment had been posted, but they had yet to accept the payment.  Their response to our dilemma; call Corporate.  So, we did. Problem rectified, problem resolved, checkbook reconciliation.  Peace.

According to Webster's Dictionary, reconcile means to restore to friendship or harmony, settle, resolve.

And that is exactly what God did, in Christ on the cross.  He made a payment we could not make ourselves, to pay a debt we could not pay, and He did it once and for all.

"By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all."

Hebrews 10:10

"Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high;" Hebrews 1:3

"...It is finished:" John 19:30b

Friend, Jesus paid your sin debt....

    but you must accept the payment to be reconciled back to God....

        Will you turn to Him today?  He is waiting for you....

            But that's just me!

"In the gospel, sinner, you are invited to God, you are assured that God forgives your sins, ceases to angry, and would have you reconciled to Him through His Son. Thus, love is established between God and the soul/ Then it is for laughter for happiness, for joy." Charles Spurgeon 

Poisoned

 

"But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. As we said before, so say I now again, If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that you have received, let him be accursed." Galatians 1:8-9

"O FOOLISH Galatians, who hath bewitched you, that ye should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ hath been evidently set forth, crucified among you? Galatians 3:1

My husband and I went 'Glamping' this weekend.  It's the posh version of camping.  We were not out in the middle of nowhere, like most camping adventures, but we settled into a State Park that is in the middle of a city. This State Park was built in what was once a residential housing area before a flood destroyed it. Because of its location, I had decided that it would be nice to only take breakfast food and snacks along with us, and that we could eat out for either lunch or dinner, and my husband agreed.  Our first take-out was from a Chinese restaurant that we used to eat in all the time.  We expected it to be delicious, not only in taste, but appearance.  We were very disappointed.  Our dinner looked like yesterday's lunch leftovers.  Needless to say, it didn't sit well in our stomachs.  

Our second day of 'glamping' we decided to take out lunch from a local establishment that we have also enjoyed in times past.  This time, the food was appealing by sight and by taste!  We were not disappointed at all!  We enjoyed every bite.  But what we didn't know while we were enjoying this tasty meal, is that the taste and appearances had fooled us.  Shortly after our meal, my husband and I became sick: Food Poison.

For those of you who have ever become sick from tainted food, you know that it's not a very pleasant experience to go through.  It dampened our glamping adventure even more than the rain did.  We ended up cutting our adventure short, packing up and heading home.

So, what does this illustration have to do with the two verses in Galatians?

The churches in Galatia were poisoning themselves by believing in things that were not true.  They set aside what they had known to be true; the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ, and believed in works.  Rules.  Legalism.

False Religion is the same as Poison.

Are you eating tainted doctrine...?

    I hope not,  it will only cause you pain, discomfort and possibly an early death...

        But that's just me!

        

So Shall We Ever Be

"Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. Wherefore comfort one another with these words." 

1 Thessalonians 4:17-18

I have a friend right now who is getting all of her 'ducks in a row.'  Putting things in order for the 'just in case.'  It's hard to try to figure out the future when we are still trying to figure out what we need to do today.

Sometimes, when I read a book, the middle of the story begins to get intense.  I don't like intense, so I will read the last few pages in the book, just so I know that everything works out OK and to my liking.  lol. (I'm not going to read a book that doesn't end the way I want it to; I believe in Happily Ever After.)

But real life is different.

Things are going great and then WHAM!  From out of the blue something enters our lives that rocks our boat and shifts the solid ground we are standing on.

But if you are a child of God, then you already know the end of the story: Jesus wins, and one day we will be in heaven with Him forever.

If you could know what tomorrow holds, would you want to know?  

I don't think I would.  I think it would ruin my 'today.'

God is already in our tomorrow, and the next day and the next day after that, and He has promised to go before us in all things.  Isn't it nice to walk into the unknown and have our Saviour already there with His arms wide open for us letting us know that everything is going to be OK and that we are not alone? I take comfort in that. God sustains us in all things.  He never fails.

No matter how my life or your life may be right now...

    we can still rest in the fact that we know the end of the story...

            But that's just me!

But for A Moment

"For which cause we faint not; but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day. For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory;" 2 Corinthians 4:16-17

In Mark 5, Luke 8 and Matthew 9, there is an account of a woman who had a chronic illness, an issue of blood, for twelve years.  She had seen every doctor, and she had spent all the money she had to get help with this illness and instead of getting better, her condition worsened.  I can relate; and I'm sure many of you can as well.  We live with a chronic illness every single day.  We wake up each morning and wonder if this is going to be a good day, or if our condition will flare up and our day will be one filled with pain.  Pain that is often debilitating.

I often read this account and try to imagine the joy this woman experienced at the moment she touched the hem of our Saviour's garment.  She reached out in faith, and 'straightway the fountain of her blood was dried up; and she felt in her body that she was healed of that plague.' (Mark 5:29) This woman found healing.

Then there is the Apostle Paul, who earnestly poured out his heart to God in prayer to be healed from the thorn in the flesh, and God told him that rather than being healed from his infirmity, the Power of Christ would rest upon him. (2 Corinthians 12:9)

Paul woke up every morning with his chronic illness, but was reassured by God Himself that the Power of Christ would be upon him!

Can you imagine?

And it was the Apostle Paul who penned 2 Corinthians 4:16-17 under the power of the Holy Spirit that reminds us that our chronic illness that we wake up with every single morning, is merely a 'light affliction, which is but for a moment.'

Sometimes it doesn't feel that way, does it?

I've been dealing with my chronic illness for 34 years now.  Some days are manageable, and some days are hard to bear, but in the context of eternity, this pain truly is 'but for a moment.' Our afflictions in the here and now, are 'light' and are 'short-lived' compared to what eternity holds for us one day.  

Albert Barnes once said, 'Our trials are not meaningless. The afflictions actively prepare, build, and secure spiritual maturity and heavenly reward for the believer.  While earthly pain is fleeting and weightless, the glory of heaven is substantial, rich and eternal."

The Apostle Paul didn't describe his affliction 'light' because it didn't hurt.  No, he described his affliction as 'light' because of what he compared it with: an eternal reward.

We can look past our fleeting pain today...

    when we focus on our eternal healing in heaven...

        But that's just me!

Until

"Be merciful unto me, O God, be merciful unto me: for my soul trusteth in thee: yea, in the shadow of thy wings will I make my refuge, until these calamities be overpast." Psalm 57:1

These words were sung from a cave. David was hiding from Saul, and in his current position and his current state of affairs, he turned to The Only One Who could help him.

God.

Have you ever been there?  In a cave? Hiding from the enemy?  Have you ever been backed into a corner and realized that there was only one way out of that corner?  

You will have to walk past your enemy.

Is your cave of your own making, or a result of someone else? 

Are you hiding from a person? Finances? Bad news? Health?

Your situation can be anything, but the destination always seems to be the same: The Cave.

I've been in a cave for almost two weeks now, so when I opened my bible and read David's heart cry, I found comfort in his words.  He was in a dire-straight.

But he was not alone.

His prayer was so serious, he asked twice for God's mercy.  He also reminded God that it was in Him alone that He trusted.  But what is so beautiful to me is that in the midst of the cave, David found refuge in the shadow of God's wings. 

We also know, by the words of David's prayer, that he realized that his calamity would eventually end. He knew he was in a cave right now, but he also knew that he would not be there forever.

UNTIL: Up to the time that.

David would remain in the shadow of God's wings UNTIL it was over.

David also knew that this would not be his last calamity.

When David prayed, he asked for God's mercies UNTIL THESE calamities be overpast.

'These' is the plural form of 'this.'

In other words, David was praying, 'God, be merciful to me, be merciful to me, because you are the only One I can trust, and I will remain in the shadow of your wings until this calamity is finished because You are my refuge!'

Sometimes when we find ourselves in a cave, it seems like we will never make our way out; but we will.

But UNTIL then...

    Remain nestled in the shadow of God's Wings...

        He is our refuge and strength and through Him we can overcome our enemy...

            But that's just me!

"The marvelous richness of human experience would lose something of rewarding joy if there were no limitations to overcome. The hilltop hour would not be half so wonderful if there were no dark valleys to traverse." Helen Keller

Fears

 "The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? the LORD is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?" Psalm 27:1 (and in the margin of my bible, I added, 'Or what?'

Turning on the News, every day is enough to make anyone fearful.  The unrest, anger, and hate in our society causes most sane people to want to crawl under a rock. Crime, Food Recall, Viruses and the list could go on. Fear will take hold of your heart...if you let it.

So, what exactly is fear?

Fear is an unpleasant often strong emotion caused by anticipation or awareness of danger, a particular instance, emotion, reason for alarm. (Webster's Dictionary)

Now that we know what fear is, do you recognize it in your own life?  Are you going through a situation right now that is causing you great fear or anxiety?  Is there someone in your life that you are afraid of?

And what about fear itself?

During the Great Depression there was much fear and panic going on in our Nation.  During his first inaugural address on March 4, 1933, Franklin D. Roosevelt spoke these famous words, "the only thing we have to fear is fear itself."  What he was trying to say was that panic and paralyzing terror are more dangerous than the actual crisis we face because they stop us from taking action."

I believe it.  When I'm afraid, I shackle my mind to my fear and I am rendered useless.

But when I finally calm down by quoting God's precious promises to me, I'm reminded of another definition of fear:  It's the reverential awe of God.  It's amazing that when I focus on God, my fear turns into trusting in His promises, my fear turns into courage, confidence and fearlessness!

When I focus on God, fear runs!

Isaiah 41:10 is one of my all-time favorites.   It says, "Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness." 

I can't tell you how many times I have repeated this verse over and over in my mind through different situations in my life.  God's ever presence, comfort and encouragement removes fear and anxiety!

When I fear God, I have nothing else to fear, why?

    Because everything I'm afraid of...

        Is afraid of Jesus...

            But that's just me!

"God's presence brings quietness in the midst of alarm." F.B. Meyer

'Fear not' appears 71 times in the bible.

'Do not be afraid,' or 'Be not afraid,' appears roughly 30 to 40 additional times, depending on the exact wording.  The combined total of similar comfort phrases adds up to around 100 to 145 times in the KJV