Living by Faith

“Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” Hebrews 11:1

This verse has been on my mind a lot recently. I feel like much of what God has been teaching me and showing me over the last few weeks is related to how often I fail to have faith in Him. Now I’m not talking faith in terms of saving faith or doubting my salvation. I’m talking about the everyday faith–trusting God and having faith in His plan every moment of every day.

God has used several things to show me this. He’s used current situations I find myself in (I’ll write more about these in the near future) and going through Numbers in my devotional time. In Numbers 13, Israel is right on the edge of entering the Promised Land (land that by it’s very name God has promised to Israel). God commands them to send out spies to go throughout the land and bring a report back to the people. When the spies return after 40 days, they tell the people the land is amazing and beautiful. But they don’t stop there. Ten of the spies are scared to enter the land because of the people already there, so they tell the Israelites and work everyone up into a frenzy. Now it’s not just the 10 spies that are scared, everyone else is too and are refusing to enter the land. They say crazy things like, “We would rather go back to Egypt!” They would rather go back to SLAVERY than attempt to enter the land God has promised them! How crazy is that?!?!

Those that remember the story know that they do not enter the land, and God punishes their disobedience and says they will now wander throughout the wilderness for 40 years before they can enter the land. Throughout reading and meditating on this, among other things, God reminded me that I too can act this way. There are many times that God calls me to do something, and I freeze up, get scared, and disobey. Or other times I will constantly question God about His plan and doubt that this is what’s best for me. In these moments I’m acting just like the Israelites. It’s easy for us to look at this story and think they were crazy for disobeying. We can look at the story and flip through our Bible and see clearly all the miraculous things God did to bring them out of Egypt, and see the constant stream of promises that He will lead them and protect them. But there are times for all of us when God calls us to do something and we react with fear and doubt, instead of trust and faith.

And what happens when we have doubt and fear instead of faith? We tend to disobey just like the Israelites. We hear God’s plan and think, “Why would He ask me to do that?” or “Why is He leading me down this road?” or “How is He possibly going to do this?” This causes even more questions and leads to more doubt. Eventually it will lead to us abandoning God’s plan all together, or will lead us to try and control the situation. We don’t have all the answers, which scares us, so we think it will be better if we just control everything. We don’t think about this when we’re reacting this way, but responding by trying to control things is one of the most ridiculous things we can do. Really think about this. God calls you to do something that might be scary, or not what you would prefer/want, or outside of your gifting, etc. You aren’t sure how this is going to work out or how it’s going to happen, so instead of living by faith you try to take over. You were worried how God was going to make it happen, but somehow you being in control makes things better? We are doubting the God of the universe, the God that created you and me and everything else out of nothing and we are somehow comforted by taking control away from Him and giving it to ourselves! How does this make any sense? It doesn’t, and yet we do it all the time.

That’s why Hebrews 11:1 is such an important verse. It reminds us that faith doesn’t mean we will have all the information or answers. We have to trust what we don’t see and have assurance in things that have yet to happen. We can have assurance because if God calls us to do something, then it’s like it’s already done because God will complete His plans. Think back to the Israelites. God said He would give Him the land, in God’s eyes it’s already done. The Israelites didn’t believe that and freaked out once a little adversity came. A big part of trusting God in everyday situations is having assurance in His ways and His plans. God’s promises are the only guarantees in life that we have. They’re really the only things we can truly trust in beyond any doubt.

The other part of having faith in God and trusting Him through all things is really believing that God’s plan is better than our plan. We can have trouble believing this one, but it’s so true. God’s ways are always better than our ways, and God says throughout His word that He is working all things together for our good and His glory. If we don’t really believe this we will constantly doubt God’s plan for our lives, especially when it conflicts with ours. Now, God’s plan being better than ours doesn’t mean that it’s easier, or more convenient, or what we would choose. God’s road might be really difficult, filled with struggles, but it’s always what’s best for us. And we can believe that and take God at His word, or we can constantly question and go against Him. It didn’t work out for the Israelites and it won’t work out for us.

How is your faith in God right now? Are you struggling with believing and living out His plan? If you are, I can definitely understand. In those moments of doubt, fear, anxiety, or struggles, let’s remind ourselves that God has a plan and it’s better than ours. Not only does God have a plan, but He always will complete His plan so we can have full confidence and assurance in Him. Let’s strive to walk in faith and trust in God in all circumstances.