Understanding Faith – Pinch of Positivity

What is Faith?

CJ Montgomery — Thu, 01 Aug 2019 07:00:26 +0000

Scripture: Hebrews 11:1-16

Key Verse: Hebrews 11:1

There are many times as a Christian that people have told me not to lose faith or to keep the faith. To be quite honest, I did not know what that meant. I felt like the word faith was just being tossed around as a religious colloquialism. For some reason, it felt like people just weren’t listening to me and consequently used that saying as an escape. So, God placed it on my heart to explore this word more with you all in this series. Hopefully by the end that saying will not only make sense to me, but to you all as well.

Hebrews 11:1 has the clearest definition of faith that I could find in the bible. Put in simple terms it says that faith is the belief that God is working everything out behind the scenes even if what is in front of us looks bad. Now that sounds easy enough, but when I thought about moments when people told me to keep the faith I struggled with the application. How am I supposed to keep the faith when my tuition is due and all my scholarships have been applied, but I am still thousands of dollars short? How am I supposed to keep the faith when my grandmother passes away and she was the only one who could make me smile in my darkest hours? How am I supposed to keep the faith when someone else gets to reap the benefits for the work I put in? I honestly felt trapped in all of those situations and felt that God had left me alone to suffer. However, this word faith says I am supposed to trust that everything is going to be ok even when it doesn’t seem to be following a logical pattern (v.3). Because, if we could explain it then how would He get the credit?

Verses 4-12 of this chapter give us examples of people in the bible who walked by faith. If we look closely at these verses, we can see several components of what it means to keep the faith.

Abel showed us that faith is sacrificial. It means giving God your best even when other people do not (v.4).
Enoch showed us that faith is maintaining a close enough relationship with God to the point where trust is inevitable (v.5).
Noah showed us that faith is being obedient. It may not always be clear why God has you partaking in certain actions, but you must do them anyways (v.7).
Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Sarah showed us that faith is believing that God will keep His promises. The bible says he will never leave us nor forsake us in Deuteronomy 31:6, so we must trust that He will always follow through (v.8-11).

I mean this all sounds great, but when you are in the middle of the storm most of this mindset goes out the window. For that reason, God wants us to know that the biggest component of faith is remembering that the earth is not our forever home (v.16). God doesn’t want us to get caught up in earthly disappointment and frustration. He recognizes and validates our emotions, but He wants us to know that all of those feelings are temporary. We have to believe that when this life is all over that money, death, or even other people’s success cannot impact our salvation. He wants us to trust His plan for our lives.

Prayer: Lord today I want to say thank you. Thank you for the people who told me to keep the faith in dark moments. Thank you for always making a way for me when I felt trapped or lost. Thank you for helping me to make sacrifices, maintain a close relationship with you, be obedient, and believe that you will always keep your promises. Lord, because you have given me the ability to have faith, I know that when it is all over on this earth, I will be able to come to my true home and spend eternity with you and for that I am truly grateful. Please help me to keep the faith. I thank you in advance for everything you are about to do in my life. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

How to Grow in Faith

CJ Montgomery — Thu, 08 Aug 2019 07:00:45 +0000

Scripture: Romans 10:13-18

Key Verse: Romans 10:17

When we see an oak tree out in nature, we don’t often question how it came to be. We don’t think about how a seed had to be buried, watered, and cared for. We don’t think about the time it took for it to grow. And, we definitely don’t think about the storms that it battled to stay rooted. The same thing can be applied to faith. When we see a confident Christian figure, we don’t question how they got there. We don’t think about how they came to know about Christ. We don’t think about the time it took for them to accept Christ. And, we definitely don’t think about all of the persecution that came their way during the journey. As Christians, growing in faith is essential to our walk on earth. Unfortunately, there are many of us who don’t know what it takes to grow in faith even if we know what faith is.

In Romans chapter 10, we learn that the best way to grow in faith is to listen to the word of God (v.17). Some people confuse that verse to mean that the only way you can grow in faith is to go to church. While church is important because we all need Godly community to hold us accountable for what we read in the word, there are many churches today who are reading from the Apostolic Self Translation. They are making up interpretations to fit their needs and beliefs and corrupting others along the way. So, it is important that if we want to grow in faith that we study Gods word on our own. If you go to church, bring your bible and read along with the preacher don’t just take what they are saying as the undeniable truth. As humans we make mistakes, but God’s word has no flaws. Maybe you don’t enjoy going to the church building, but God shows numerous times in the bible that the church is not the building, but the people. Find other people to talk about God’s word with. Partake in activities that are feeding your spirit. That can be anything from watching a sermon on YouTube to streaming gospel music through a music platform. Then work your way up to entering into the physical church to have your spirit fed. Figure out what works for you, but you have to care for the seed once it has been planted. I know there are some of you reading this questioning whether or not the seed has even been planted. Well if you have made it to this point in the series, let me assure you that it has, and it is already beginning to take root. It is now up to you to figure out how to water and care for it so that your faith can grow.

Moreover, you must understand that growing in faith takes time. You may have to visit a few churches or listen to multiple artists before you find what speaks to you. The important thing is that you don’t give up or walk away when things get hard. You have to start early trusting God that He is going to send you where you need to go and what you need to have to be successful. So, maybe you haven’t been to church in a while because someone judged you or said something that bothered you. This is where faith kicks in pray about it and believe that God will find you a church home. There are churches all over the world (v.18). Some are super formal, and others are really casual. Some are really big, and others are really small. Some are loud, and others are quiet. It’s like shopping for new shoes, even if they all look the same, you have to find the one that fits best.

God wants you to grow in faith. He knows that you have a burning desire to get closer to Him, and today He is reaching out to you and telling you to come home. He wants to surround you with people who care about you and love you. He wants to help you care for the seed. He wants to protect you from the storms. You have to make the next move.

Prayer: Lord, thank you for helping me grow in faith. Lord please allow me to find a way to hear your word. Help me to study your word closely and find community that will hold me accountable. Lord, I thank you for where I am right now in this journey. I cannot wait to see where you take me next. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Stepping Out on Faith

CJ Montgomery — Thu, 15 Aug 2019 02:58:50 +0000

Scripture: Matthew 14:22-33

Key Verse: Matthew 14:29

Sometimes life will put you in a position where you have to make a difficult decision. The product of that decision may then impact your family or your future. In those moments, the tension can be high because one option may appear to be safer than the other, but this is where you must step out on faith. You must pray to God about your options and follow where He wants you to go and once you are there you can’t get distracted by your surroundings. You must always stay focused on Him.

In the scripture for today, Peter is faced with a difficult decision. He can be obedient to God, which is one of the components of faith, or he can stay where he feels most comfortable. Peter decides to be obedient, but in His obedience, He takes his eyes off Jesus and focuses on his surrounding, which causes Him to sink (v.29-30). There are many of you who have been given the opportunity to follow Christ but decided not to out of fear of what others around you may think about the choice. Then, there are others of you who followed Christ for a while but somewhere along the way you got distracted by something else in the world, so now you are sinking. Regardless of who you are today God is extending His hand to save you (v.31). He wants you to know that when you make these life decisions you are not in them alone. He will always be by your side and show up right on time.

Stepping out on faith can be a little uncomfortable, but it is always okay to ask God to show you a sign (v.28). However, if you ask for the sign you must wait for the response before you act (v.29). Some of us get upset with God when things don’t go our way, but it is our fault for not waiting for Him to give us clearance on what we should do. Then when we start to sink, we would rather let others throw us a pity party instead of letting God save us so that we can try again. It is the saving from the mistake that often brings new souls to Christ. When we see God work miracles that often catches our attention way faster than just reading His word because, as humans, we rely a lot on what is in front of us. (However, if you remember the definition of faith, we can’t rely on what we see.) God is able to make the impossible possible. He wants to help you accomplish your dreams. He wants to see you safe and happy, so that He can get the glory out of the situation. God loves you and doesn’t want you to get hurt. While you are making this plan for your life, make sure that it aligns with God’s will because; if it is in His will, then it will be easier for you to step out on faith. Also, you can’t be afraid to speak your dreams into existence. If you think that you are headed in the direction God wants you to go, then call out to Him and ask Him to meet you there. Allow Him to clear the way for you.

On the other hand, once you step out on faith, you must stay focused on God. There will be people and various obstacles that will try to get your attention. They are simply there to test your faith. However, in order to ensure that He will get the glory in the end God has to remain in control. So, the moment you stop focusing on Him, you can expect that things will begin to go bad. And, while it is true that He will help you get back to safety, keeping your eyes on Him just allows for it to be a smoother journey than you trying to do the impossible with your human abilities. God wants to help you step out on faith. He wants to blow your mind and make your wildest dreams come true. Will you trust Him?

Prayer: Lord, thank you for giving me the opportunity to step out on faith. I need you Lord. I need you to help my dreams come true. Lord help me to remain focused on you throughout this journey, so that you can get the glory for my success. In Jesus’ name, Amen.