Step by Step

Of the many scriptures we can read about faith, the one that most often comes to my mind is found in Hebrews 11:1;

“Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.”

It seems from the very beginning of time, mankind has found it difficult to live by this basic principal. Starting in the book of Genesis we see a couple who trusted in what they saw rather then believing what God had said. They choose to walk by sight rather then by faith. The truth is that we also are faced with this same challenge almost every day of our lives. Will we live according to what God has spoken and promised, or will we walk only by what we can see in the natural?

I've wrestled with this same issue of walking by faith in my own life. I must confess, I can think of too many examples when I was focused on what I could see, rather than choosing to believe and act upon what God had spoken. Paul instructs us in Romans 1:17;

“For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith.”

Today’s quote by Martin Luther King reflects the same kind of declaration that Paul made to the Romans:

The Bible is full of stories of men and women who learned what it meant to “take the first step in faith”. Faced with the odds stacked against them, we see a very old and barren couple hold on to the promise of God to receive a son. God said their descendants would be like the sand and the stars. They never waivered, even when all natural hope of conceiving had past, they continued to believe God.

Story after story we see how God’s people choose to believe His promises, even in the face of great obstacles. In Hebrews 11 we read about men and women who walked by faith, refusing to turn back, give up, or surrender, even in the face of death. I could weep to think of all they endured for their Faith. Some would say they were fools, yet concerning these heroes God said,

"Of whom the world was not worthy". (vs. 38)

Oh, more then ever I long to be counted among those whose faith was unmoved and unshaken by circumstances. Just like Martin Luther King said, we must be willing to take that first step!

The choice is always ours.

My prayer is taken from Psalm 125;

"Father, today I ask you to strengthen my faith so it would be like Mount Zion, which can never be shaken. Even when problems, disappointments, and unanswered prayers try to discourage me, surround me like the mountains of Jerusalem. Father, you promised to do good and reward all those who trust in you, who are upright in heart, and who diligently seek your face. Give me a vision to see your promises, and the grace to walk before you in faith, step by step. In Jesus Name, Amen.”

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