Are you inclined to lose heart in your salvation when trouble comes on you with both feet, and fists flailing? Do you lose faith in God’s ability to save, and doubt His love for you in these times of hardship? Well, just as He was able to save you in the hour of your first belief He is there to sustain you in that faith always, and feels your suffering.
Are things not going well in your life? Do you go to work and do the same things as those around you and yet they prosper and you do not? Do you ask yourself how those around you can do so well, and yet you, who are a righteous person, fails? Well perhaps it is your association with those who are unbelievers, and not doing all that God desires of you.
There are two types of Christians in the world... those that call themselves faithful, and those who were called and made so by Christ himself; we must carefully ask ourselves which of these we are. In our quest of faith there are those who travel alone, and those who walk humbly behind their master... those of earthly substance, and those of heavenly power and treasure.
Perhaps you say that you once believed in Jesus Christ, but not any longer, or you say that you are a Christian and yet there is no outward flourishing to indicate that this is true. In both cases, what is the problem with your faith, what stifled it and kept I from prospering? You are like a plant, but without a healthy root it can’t continue to grow, and will eventually die.
Why do you fret and run about in your faith? Are you fearful of physical death, and don’t understand what lies ahead, or are you actually afraid that you have fallen short of God’s mark and will not experience eternity with Him? As a Christian you should fear neither... you should have confidence in the Lord’s promise of eternity, and know that your faith in Jesus Christ is your pass to dine comfortably, restfully, at God’s table.
Are you happy? By this I mean are you confident with your life to the point of being blissful and happy without nary a care, or unfulfilled desire... like a child whose parent loves and cares for them perfectly? Do you think this is even possible? Well, in God and Jesus Christ it is more than possible, but you must give all your cares over to God, and place all your desire in Jesus... knowing you are Theirs like family, and that They will watch over you.
Are you reluctant to pray, or to come before God because you feel unworthy? Do you see your imperfections and not understand the power of the cleansing that Christ provides you? Jesus is Holy before the Lord, and He covers us. We should be forever thankful that He, as our High Priest, is able to take us before God in our imperfect state. We become perfect in God’s eyes because of the Holiness of Jesus... by His cleansing blood.
How complete is our dedication to Jesus Christ? Is He the sole reason for our living, or just another ingredient in our life? Our lives are so full of activities such as work, play, raising children, artistic endeavors, education, and so much more... how is it that we are able to squeeze Jesus into this busy schedule? We do so by making Him the foundation, guiding principle, and focus of everything else. How is your life ordered? What would you sell for Him?
Do you have enough humility, faith, and confidence in God, to hand your problems over to Him? Or, perhaps you are just someone who worries over every trouble, all troubles, yours, theirs, the world’s, and just can’t let them go. Do you realize that when you do this you are damaging yourself, and that you are harming the temple of the Holy Spirit within you in stressing this way? To God none of your issues or worries presents any challenge whatsoever? So why do you shoulder them yourself?
We live during the day in the light of the sun, and at night we endure the darkness, but do we walk in the spiritual light of Jesus Christ, and do we separate ourselves from the darkness that is not of Him? How do these two sources of light, the physical and the spiritual, differ in our lives?
Do you feel like the grace you have received from Jesus Christ is enough? Are you satisfied with it, and willing to sit where you are and grow no further in it because you feel it is complete in you? If this is the case then open your eyes because that is not a scriptural truth... we are told to seek and grow in the grace of Jesus every day.
In times of peace and plenty it is easy to maintain our faith, and to remember the gift of redemption that God has given us through Jesus Christ, but when we are faced with suffering and hardship this is when our faith is placed in the furnace and dipped in the water that strengthens it. We weep and begin to question God, mistaking what we have always held to be valuable and real in our lives to be more precious than Him who tempers us... above Him who redeems us.
When did you begin to pray? Can you remember, or was it so long ago that it has been lost in the mist of your memory? Did you begin praying at the moment you confessed God as your creator, Jesus as your savior, or even before you understood who they were and you cried out in the darkness of your night for help... not knowing exactly who would come, but knowing someone greater than yourself would respond? Prayer, it begins with a cry, and ends in a conversation of love and eternity.
What will this year bring you in regards to life, and your faith? Will you continue living here on earth as you know it now; filled with challenge, the saving grace of Jesus, and the comfort of the Holy Spirit, or will you cross over Jordan to rest in God the Father? Will you suffer new hardships in this world, and obtain new heights of faith by the work of the Spirit in you, or will this year be free from turmoil, and your path made straight? Will you eat manna here in the desert, or the milk and honey of heaven beyond? Are you afraid of what lies ahead for you this year... well fear not!
Has God called you, and given you a job to do for Him? Is this job beyond your abilities, and have you been ignoring His voice because you feel inadequate? Perhaps you started to answer, but have let it go stagnate because you can’t see how to proceed... well in either case God is with you, but in order to overcome the difficulties and obstructions that you perceive are blocking you... you must lean on prayer, and listen to His voice. Then, as He brings success, you must give Him the glory.