Then He got into the boat and His disciples followed Him.
Suddenly a furious storm came up on the lake, so that the waves swept over the boat.
But Jesus was sleeping.
The disciples went and woke Him, saying, “Lord, save us! We’re going to drown!”
He replied, “You of little faith, why are you so afraid?”
Then he got up and rebuked the winds and the waves, and it was completely calm.
The men were amazed and asked, “What kind of man is this?
Even the winds and the waves obey him!”
Matthew 8:23-27 NIV
I have always known that faith take you up high while fear hesitates and drags you down. There have been many times we have failed to exercise faith and we have ended up disappointing God. In Hebrews 11:6 the Bible says “...without faith we cannot please God.” What is this faith we are talking about?
Faith is the substance of things hoped for the evidence of things not seen
Hebrews 11:1
Faith is a raw material for a product we are going to have. As Hebrews 11:6 explicitly says without this raw material—faith—we cannot please God. For us to have our hearts’ desires we need to have faith in the Giver and believe His word with no doubt at all.
The disciples forgot that Jesus was everything and started doubting…hence Jesus’ question (Matthew 8:25). Jesus called Peter to walk on the sea toward Him. At first Peter did…and was not drowning but he started doubting and focused on the waters THEN he started drowning. The Bible records Jesus confronting Peter: “You of little faith, why did you doubt?” (Read this record here.)
So little faith can be a raw material for us to have a product that is not attractive and leads to not having a product at all. We need to build our faith always. So, how do we build our faith? By hearing the Word of God.
Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God.
Romans 10:17
Meditate on the Word of God (Joshua 1:8), personalize the Word, receive it with gladness and obey what it says and, in so doing, we shall eat the good of the land.
Our God is good and He has made everything possible for us. It is our own wrong choices that lead us not to reach out to the great benefits that God has planned for us…if we only obey Him.
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Dear Heavenly father, I thank You for Your lovingkindness that endures forever. Thank You for who You are in our lives. Thank You for You are our Father who hears our prayers. We give You glory and honor. We pray, Lord, that You help us build our faith everyday as we study and meditate on Your word and as we listen to Your voice. Open our ears to hear what You are talking about and open our eyes to see Your greatness in the Word. May we live a life pleasing unto You always, in Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.
About Ann Mwafulirwa
Thank you, Ann, for reminding us “to build our faith ALWAYS.” I’m praying right along with you this morning!
echoing your prayer, ann <3
Amen, Ann. I, too, join you in your prayer and strive to obey more and doubt less.
I keep hearing God call me and I know I need to be in His word daily because it helps maintain my faith. It is just getting harder and harder to find the time to be alone with my Lord. My mother was diagnosed with dementia and she had to move in with us. My house is turned upside down and I have no quiet time by myself now. If I am up, she is up talking to me no matter the time. If I am in my room husband is a sleep and needs lights off or he has the TV on. The only place of privacy is in the bathroom or closet which is uncomfortable, but only option for total privacy unless husband is gone. I miss having a table full of reference books to dig deep in God’s word. I am hoping spring and warmer weather will allow me to escape outside in the afternoons when I come in from work.