Where Is Your Faith?

“Why have faith in God when you have faith in yourself?  Why trust God when you have all your bases covered?  Why pray when you have everything under control?  Why ask for your daily bread when you own the bakery?  Self-sufficiency is the great enemy of faith and prayer, which are the heartbeat of the Christian life” (Randy Alcorn, Money, Possessions, and Eternity, p. 50).

Faith is best cultivated in the times of our lives when circumstances are beyond our control.  It’s a principle that even the apostle Paul had to learn.  Notice carefully his words in 2 Corinthians as he speaks of a difficult stretch in his life: “For we do not want you to be unaware, brethren, of our affliction which came to us in Asia, that we were burdened excessively, beyond our strength, so that we despaired even of life; indeed, we had the sentence of death within ourselves so that we would not trust in ourselves, but in God who raises the dead; who delivered us from so great a peril of death, and will deliver us, He on whom we have set our hope. And He will yet deliver us, you also joining in helping us through your prayers, so that thanks may be given by many persons on our behalf for the favor bestowed on us through the prayers of many” (2 Corinthians 1:8–11 NAS95).

Paul viewed the out-of-control times in his life as opportunities build his faith in God.  As difficult as such times were, he learned that the tendency to trust in himself could only be defeated when he had run out of his own resources.  I struggle to learn the same lesson.  I desire to be a person of faith but I want it on MY terms instead of GOD’S terms.  But it doesn’t work that way.  Faith in GOD only flourishes when I begin to surrender faith in MYSELF.

God loves you!

Mike