Genuine Faith

"But my righteous one will live by faith. And if he shrinks back, I will not be pleased with him." - Hebrews 10:38 (NIV)

Faith - we as Christians all say we have faith in God...but do we really? We have abundant faith when life is going great and things are going our way: "Wow, God is blessing me so much! He is an awesome God and I know He takes care of me.". Yet, we so easily lose faith when life isn't going so great: "Why is God letting this happen to me? Why isn't He answering my prayers? Why, why, why?!!". Real, true, honest, GENUINE faith is having faith in ALL circumstances of our lives - good and bad, happy and sad, joyful and tragic. It pleases God when we place our trust in Him and the promises He has made to us. He loves us and wants the best for us but we have to believe in Him.

For the past two weeks, I have been studying the Book of Matthew, chapter by chapter. There are some wonderful examples of genuine faith in just the first few chapters. Such as:

    - Joseph - 3 times the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and

      commanded him to do something; 3 times he did it without question.

      (1:24, 2:13-14 & 19-21)

    - Simon Peter & Andrew - Jesus told them to follow Him; they dropped their nets

      and followed. (4:18-20)

    - The centurion - Jesus said about this man, "I tell you the truth, I have not found

      anyone in Israel with such great faith." (8:10)

    - The suffering woman - she touched the edge of Jesus cloak because she knew by

      doing so, she would be healed. (10:20-21)

So many others - the blind men, the man with leprosy, the paralytic, the demon-possessed men, the ruler whose daughter had died, on and on. This is what God has pointed out to me time and time again in Matthew - the genuine faith of these people. Some were made whole, some were saved from death, some were made disciples of Jesus - why? Because of their faith!!

What are you facing in your life right now that might be testing your faith? Is it a health issue, a relationship problem, financial difficulties, prayers you don't feel are being answered, job woes, something else? Then reach out to our Heavenly Father, don't turn your back on Him; He hasn't turned His back on you. If you reach out to Him, like the suffering woman, in unwavering, genuine faith, He will make you whole again, give you peace, heal your spirit, be the light in the darkness. I don't know about you, but I'd rather live with faith than without it.

"There is no pit so deep that God's love is not deeper still." (Corrie ten Boom)

Dear God, help me to always remember You are near and You can overcome anything I may be facing. Keep me mindful of Your presence, Your love and Your power. May I have genuine, unwavering faith in Your promises. In Jesus' name, Amen.