More on Faith

Last night I wrote about faith, but I wanted to get into it a little more today.  There seems to be a common misconception of the meaning of "faith".  For starters, we have this crazy idea that faith is blind.  We have the notion that to have faith means to commit and entrust ourselves to a desire or an idea that we know little or nothing about. This idea has no power to do what I need or want it to do.  It's only an idea.  It would be like stepping into a puddle that we really have no idea how deep it is.  But because we want to get to the other side of the road, we decide it's a good and necessary thing to cross through that puddle.  It looks like it's not deep, but we can't see it's depth, so we muster up our courage and sweep our mind clear of any suggestion that it might be dangerous.  We visualize getting to the other side of that road. But we have to believe that it's possible, so we're gonna need faith to get us there,  Without faith - even, the wrong kind of faith - I am stuck. I will never step in that puddle. 

So I can try to believe with all my heart that the puddle is shallow and step through it, or remain where I am because without certainty that I'll reach the other side safely, I'm too scared to try. 

However, if we clear up what faith really is, then we will know which way is best.  Faith has an object - God.  Now you're probably confused, thinking, "What does God have to do with whether or not I go to the other side of the road?"

If I believe that God is who the Bible says He is, then I believe He loves me.  I know that He knows everything (like how deep the puddle is), and He cares so much about me that He actually knows how many hairs I have on my head.  The Bible tells me He has all power and that He has good plans for me.  He doesn't want me to perish.  So I put my faith IN GOD and BELIEVE (TRUST) that He will help me decide what I should do.   

He will either say, "Don't step through that puddle - it's really dangerously deep." or He will say, "Go!"

Because I know what I know about Him, and that He does not lie, I will put my faith (trust) in Him and do what HE says.  Obedience always goes along with faith (trust).

There is one catch though:  Unless I know what God's character is and what He has or has not promised me, how can I be certain of which way to go?  I must know what the Bible tells me about Him.  So faith is not blind.  It is based on knowledge - knowledge of God.  I must read the Bible to find out what He's like and what He promises me.  

It's your faith in Him that will enable you to get from one day to the next,  You may not know what adventures or heartaches will come your way, but you will know you have a GUIDE and that you will never be alone.

For those of you who have PD,  you know that there are many "puddles" blocking your progress in a world that is becoming more and more challenging to us.  This is true whether you have PD or not.  So, read your Bible.  Ask Him to help you understand His Word.  He loves you.  He will answer.

Real Faith

This is dedicated to the person I haven't seen in a long while and who stirred my thoughts tonight and got me to thinking along these lines.  Thank you. 

Faith...........  What is faith?  Is it something that will make the outcome of a situation sure to come true?  If I believe hard enough for what I want to happen, will it happen?  Is this faith?  No.  This is not faith.  It's not even true.  If it were true, do you  think I would still have Parkinson's Disease?  Certainly not!
Faith points to the One in whom I believe to do what He says He will do - to remain true to His character. So who do I have faith in?  God.  The God of the Bible.  Jesus.  He is the only one who can always be counted on to do the right thing - the loving thing.
I can face the day ahead with this dreadful disease because I know the One who is there every minute with me.  I know that He is love and light and goodness.  He has all power and knows everything.  Knowing that He is all these things and I can count on that to never change, then I can face the day ahead with this dreadful disease.  Whatever happens (it will only be what He allows) it will work out ok because He is looking out for my best interests.  He will tell me if I go the wrong way, or do an inappropriate thing.  If I ignore Him then He will do something to get my attention.  If I am His child, He will not let me get away with doing harmful or immoral things, because He loves me too much to let me settle for what is not best. 
I have faith that I will make it through the night tonight.  I don't know what will happen tonight, but I have faith that He will be here with me and that nothing can happen unless He allows it.  I know His character, therefore I know nothing will be more than I can cope with, because He has promised it is so. 
I can ask for Him to heal me.  Will I be healed tonight?  If I only think positively and not entertain the thought that He might say no, will I be healed tonight?  Can I expect that?    No.  Well does that mean that my faith wasn't big enough or strong enough to receive what I asked for?  No.  It simply means your faith was misplaced.  It was not faith in the One who can perform miracles, but faith in the outcome I wanted.  Is it good to ask for healing?  Yes.  But it may not be best for your idea of healing to be the one God chooses.  And so God sometimes says, "No."  Sometimes He says, "Not now."  Other times He says, "Not in that way."  He says no because we often ask for something that ultimately would not work out right. 
What if we took the word, "no" out of a parent's vocabulary?  It would be disastrous.  Well, we can no more take ,"no" out of God's vocabulary than we can remove it from a parent's vocabulary.  We learn what is appropriate to ask for when we have heard no enough times.
I'm going to continue to ask Him for healing, but if He says, "Not now.", I will not have a fit like a spoiled child, but will remember who my Father is and trust Him to do what's best.  Faith is trusting Him.

I'm Up

Well, I am awake when I should be sleeping.  Pain woke me up several times before I actually got up.  I'm looking forward to the time when I will be face to face with my Lord with a new body!  Better things are ahead of me, but for now, He sees fit to allow a body that does not function as it should.  I am grateful that it is no worse than it is.  Things could be A LOT worse.  I will rest in the knowledge that He loves me and knows best.  I surrender all to Him.  I will go with faith - faith that He is in control, and faith that He will do what He says He will do.  I'm going back to bed now to try and sleep.  Pray for me..........