When the children of Israel were delivered from Egypt and they crossed over the Red Sea, their faith was at an all-time high. They sang, danced and shouted the praises of God for revealing his mighty arm of deliverance. “The Lord is my strength and song … your right hand, O Lord, has become glorious in power … the Lord shall reign forever and ever” (Exodus 15:2, 6, 18).
“In Your presence is fullness of joy; at Your right hand are pleasures forevermore” (Psalm 16:11).
Christians are growing further dissatisfied with the way things are in the world and in the church. These saints are saying, “God has something more for us! He is calling us to know him better and we want to walk in obedience to that call.” They are beginning to fast and pray in their quest for more spiritual depth.
“Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble” (Matthew 6:33-34).
Enduring faith is the committing of all things into God’s hands. Enduring faith says to the Lord, “I cast every event, every care, into your hands. And I hold you to your promise to commit all that you are — all your omniscience and omnipotent strength — to preserve me.”
“Laying aside all malice, all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and all evil speaking, as newborn babes, desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby” (1 Peter 2:1-2).
Your feelings certainly do not affect your salvation or your relationship with the Lord. They may try to deceive you or rob you of your peace and joy in Christ; they may even harass or accuse. But it is time you recognize some unsettling feelings are messages from the enemy, intended to bring you down into despair and fear.
“Let us run with patience the race that is set before us” (Hebrews 12:1, KJV). The very word race suggests competition. God’s people are likened to runners in a long distance race, competing for a prize — the prize being a glorious revelation of the knowledge of Jesus Christ.
We corrupt the race towards eternity when God’s people compete with one another for success, prosperity and acclaim. Christ becomes nothing more than the sponsor, since all the runners claim to be competing in his name.
Do you believe your faith is weak? Have you diligently prayed about a need and believed God with all your heart that he would provide, and you did not see an answer? You read the glorious promises about all things being possible to those who believe: “Whatever things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive” (Matthew 21:22). “Whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them” (Mark 11:24). And you claimed those promises!
One of the reasons our prayers might not be answered is because we attempt to prescribe how God should answer them. And that all boils down to a lack of trust. The believing soul, after he has unburdened his heart in prayer to the Lord, resigns himself to the faithfulness, goodness, and wisdom of God. The true believer will leave the shaping of the answer to God’s mercy and he will welcome whatever way God chooses to answer.
The Bible shows a pattern in the lives of all God’s people. In case after case, when God began to fulfill his promises, the roof seemed to cave in.
All of us know what afflictions are, those times of trouble and stress that keep us up at night. They can be so painful and debilitating that we lose sleep because of the anguish and anxiety. Yet, as painful as afflictions are, God uses them to achieve his purposes in our lives. David writes, “Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers him out of them all” (Psalm 34:19). However, you may be surprised to know that God can use afflictions to heal sinners as well as saints.