Maria
February 2, 2007
By Maria ML #3628 10/06 AM
Dear Family,
1. In this Letter, I have some fresh Word from the Lord to share with you on the all-important topic of faith! Faith is a vital element of our lives. Everything about our spiritual life requires faith‚ beginning with the initial step of acceptance of the wonderful gift of salvation, to exercising the power of the keys and calling on Heaven's power to work miracles.
2. We need faith every single day.—Faith to believe and receive the written Word, faith to hear from the Lord personally in prophecy, faith to obey and follow the Word‚ faith to lean on the Lord to supply our needs, faith to use the spiritual weapons, faith to trust the Lord through difficult times, faith to entrust our lives and plans and loved ones to the Lord's hands, faith to believe that our prayers will be answered, faith for healing and miracles and for facing a variety of challenging and even impossible situations—faith for so many things!
3. When the Lord revealed the power of the keys of the Kingdom to the Family (in 2000), He said that at the same time that this power had been entrusted to us, we were entering an era of greater action in the spirit, an era of miracles; that the keys marked the beginning of a period of time when He would ask and expect us to reach out to His power more and more through calling on the keys, and work miracles.
4. That is something that has begun already‚ and for which the scenarios and need will increase as the days grow darker and as we get closer to and enter the Great Tribulation. If we're going to fulfill the plans the Lord has for us for the future‚ we certainly need faith! Our faith has to be strong—and we can't wait until a moment of desperation to build and strengthen it. We have to do it today! We won't have the faith to do the miracles needed in the future if we don't start exercising and stretching our faith more now.
5. The following excerpt of a letter from one of you expresses something many of you have probably thought about or felt:
One topic I would like to hear more about is faith. The Lord has worked on my faith a lot over the past year, and although I feel that my faith has been strengthened for sure, I need much more strengthening in that department if I am going to be used of the Lord for some of the "greater miracles" of the future.
I think it would be helpful to find out more about all the different hindrances that can stand in the way of our faith really growing the way it could. I personally feel that the Lord is going to start expecting me to take greater steps and even leaps of faith at times (according to some prophecies I have received), and I definitely want to be ready for it.
6. Many of you probably don't feel you have the level of faith that you need, and there are very few of us who feel ready to "call down fire" today! You'll probably all agree we could use some help in the form of counsel, insight, and tips from the Lord as to how to strengthen our faith and grow in faith.
7. What is faith? How do you know if you have faith, or have enough faith? What hinders faith? How do you increase your faith? How can you be sure that you have the faith for a specific thing? How do you strengthen your faith? How do you stretch your faith on a day-to-day basis? These questions, and more, are addressed and answered by our wonderful Husband within this two-part series.
8. I believe that the messages the Lord has given will be strengthening for everyone, no matter what your experience or length of time in the Family. Some of the principles that the Lord expresses in these new messages about faith might be a review for some of you‚ especially if you are long-time Family members and have read a lot about faith over the years. But you won't want to miss the new examples, up-to-date presentation, and even the needed review of oft-heard principles.
9. If you're relatively new to the Family, and particularly if you haven't yet done any or many Word studies about faith, then in addition to reading this new material, you'll want to ask your shepherds to share with you some of the older published Word on the topic of faith. This will give you a better and more comprehensive understanding of the foundation principles of this pillar of our spiritual lives.
10. Some Letters that I would suggest are: "More on Faith" (ML #T), "Faith and Healing" (ML #M in DB4)‚ "Follow God" (ML #4), "But If Not" (ML #313), "God's Guarantees" (ML #1027), and Virginia Brandt Berg's book Streams That Never Run Dry. Those would be well worth studying for you new disciples and Active members, if you haven't read them already. You long-time Family members may want to reread them as well‚ especially if it's been a while since you last did so.
11. Another Letter that I suggest that everyone read, or reread, is "Nothing Is Impossible!" (ML #3316). [Rolled Gold versions of the MLs listed in paragraphs 10 and 11 are available. See pages 28-29 of this Link for an explanation.] There's a lot in that GN about faith and why it's so important for us at this time in world history. Here are a few key quotes from this Letter, to whet your appetite:
(Jesus: ) The purpose of this time, these present days, is to help you grow to possess pure, white, unshakable faith—faith that will not be daunted; faith that will not flinch, nor tremble, nor waver, nor even consider the possibility of giving up; faith that doesn't consider the prospect of surrender.
In these days I wish to stretch your faith to limits which not only you have never experienced, but that no other humans who have ever lived have experienced! This is the destiny of the children of David of the Time of the End—to exercise greater faith than the world has ever seen. I want more than to enrich your faith; I want your faith to reach the outer limits! I want your faith to break all records, for it must, My loves.
This is the only type of faith that will overcome the world. This is the faith that I have carefully, lovingly, and wisely cultivated in you, My chosen ones of the Time of the End. (ML #3316:5-7, GN 920)
12. I pray that this new selection of messages will be a blessing to you, and that you'll be able to apply the principles to your life and see the results!
Much love,
Mama
13. (Jesus:) My dear ones, faith is not a complex matter. There are complex situations, but faith itself is simple. Faith is knowing—knowing that I Am, knowing that I love you and want to help you, knowing that My promises are for you personally, knowing that I answer prayer, knowing that I will do it, even though that knowledge may run contrary to every one of your senses. Faith is knowing, no matter what your sight or your mind says.
14. Little children have faith and are good examples of faith. They have faith in their parents. They know that if they cry, someone will come; if they are hungry, that they will be fed; if they need help, that they will receive it. So should you be, and so should your faith be—like children, with childlike faith. I often used the example of children when teaching, calling little children unto Me and telling My disciples that they should be like them, that they should humble themselves and receive the Kingdom of God and the things of the Kingdom like little children—trusting, knowing‚ having faith (Luke 18:15-17; Matthew 18:2-4).
15. Faith does not waver or doubt. It may be tempted to do so, and it may have thoughts of doing so, for I know that you are not perfect. But in the end, faith stands, for it believes in Me, and it is persuaded that I am well able to do what I have promised (Romans 4:21). Faith is convinced that I am able to do exceeding abundantly above all that you ask or think (Ephesians 3:20). Faith knows that there is nothing too hard for Me, and that with Me, all things are possible (Mark 10:27; Luke 1:37). Faith knows that I am faithful to My Word. Faith has full assurance that I will do it, for it knows Me and it knows My will.
16. When you have faith, your heart is fixed, trusting in Me, and you are not moved by bad news or evil tidings (Psalm 112:7). You do not have a doubtful mind, but one which steadfastly trusts in Me. You do not cast away your confidence, your faith‚ nor do you waver, like a wave of the sea, driven with the wind and tossed (Hebrews 10:35; James 1:6). You know I can do it, I want to do it, and I will do it. That is faith, which greatly pleases Me, for this is the era of faith—of trusting and knowing, even though you cannot see Me and have nothing to stand on but My Word.
17. It is given to every man to have a measure of faith (Romans 12:3)—faith to receive Me and to enter My Kingdom. Thereafter, you must build your faith and grow your faith, and there are many ways of doing so. You can ask Me for the gift of faith, which is one of the gifts of My Spirit, and I will give it to you (1 Corinthians 12:9). You can ask Me to increase your faith (Luke 17:5). I am both the author and finisher of your faith (Hebrews 12:2).
18. You also increase your faith through My Word. Faith comes by hearing‚ and hearing by the Word of God (Romans 10:17). The more you read My Word, the more faith it inspires and nurtures in you. My Word builds your faith, as do testimonies of faith. When you hear or read of answers to prayer, miracles of healing or supply or deliverance or more, your faith grows. You become even more convinced that what I have done in the past, I am able to do again, and will do again, because I am the same yesterday, today, and forever (Hebrews 13:8).
19. (Jesus: ) Your mind is one of the main barriers to faith. I do not say you shouldn't use your mind. I simply say that you should not let your mind and your natural reasoning misuse you and hinder your faith.
20. You walk by faith, not by sight, logic, analysis, or outward appearance. Faith trusts in Me and does not lean to its own understanding. Faith knows that My ways are not always your ways‚ nor are My thoughts always your thoughts (Isaiah 55:8-9). Faith trusts in the power of God rather than the wisdom of men. Faith is blind to doubts and skepticism and thoughts that maybe I can't do it. Faith knows‚ and if tempted with doubt or skepticism or natural reasoning, sets all that aside and trusts anyway. Faith keeps going forward despite anything.
21. You can also hinder your faith if you use the term lightly due to overuse or familiarity, unthinkingly, or without knowing that I will do it. Remember, faith is not hoping‚ or wishing‚ or desiring. Faith is knowing—being convinced and confident that I will do what I have promised. So if you become a little too self-confident in some situation, or are led more by your own desires than by My will, and say that you have the faith for something, or have the faith that I will do this or that or the other—without knowing—then you may be setting yourself up for a fall.
22. If you do not know something is My will, if you do not know whether you are being obedient, if you do not know that you are standing on My Word and My promises, then you should not say you have the faith for something or that you have the faith that I will do it. You may hope that I will do it, or think that I will do it, and situations in the past may have indicated that I will do it, but that is not the same as saying that you have the faith that I will do it. Faith is not desiring or wishing or hoping; it is knowing.
23. If you use the phrase "I have the faith" lightly, without faith, and your hope or wish or desire does not come to pass, then it is easy for you to wonder and doubt. You may wonder if I am able to do it, to fulfill My promises, when in reality you might not have fully claimed them and stood upon them, nothing wavering, persevering to the end, come what may. Or you might not have even checked with Me to see if it was My will to fulfill your request.
24. If your desire does not come to pass‚ you should not berate yourself that you did not have the faith for it. This chips away at your faith, when you may not have exercised it in the first place. Maybe you didn't know that it was My will and that you had the power through My Word; you may have exercised your longing or your desire rather than your faith. So don't let your faith receive the blame if a wish does not come to pass.
25. Obedience is also an essential ingredient in exercising your faith, so if you aren't being obedient to Me and My Word, then you can't have full faith. Remember‚ faith and obedience must come first, and then I answer prayer. For example, if you beseech Me for supply but have not done all that I have asked you to, or are even doing things I have asked you not to do, then you cannot ask in full faith nor be fully assured of My answer. I may have mercy and supply anyway, but I am not bound to do so.
26. Sometimes a lack of obedience will result from a lack of being in tune. For example, I may work behind the scenes to work through a certain person, or in a certain way, or in some new and different method or place, and open a door to you to provide a particular need you have—but you do not enter. Maybe you ignore My check to talk to someone, to ask someone for help, to try some new witnessing method or place or means of ministering.
27. Even though it is My will to supply for you, I can't do so if you ignore My voice or are not sensitive to it; or you decide that you don't like the look of the open door; or you convince yourself that you've already tried that same approach in the past, and since it didn't seem to work then, it won't work now. This is more a lack of being in tune than a lack of faith, but the results are the same.
28. Pride can play a role in limiting the increase of your faith by causing you to feel sufficiently reliant on yourself and your abilities, and thus less likely to see the need to have faith in Me and My promises. Rather than coming to Me and seeking Me when you're faced with a difficulty, pride can make you rush ahead to solve the problem in your own arm of the flesh.
29. In so doing, your pride eats away at your faith and stunts the growth of your faith‚ because you rely more confidently on yourself rather than on Me and My power. Therefore, you conclude that the end results of your problem–solving effort had little to do with faith in Me‚ but instead came more from your own skill and ability. This in turn prevents the flow of faith in your veins, because your spiritual arteries become clogged by your own works rather than the current of My Spirit running through you.
30. A lack of committing things to Me in prayer also hinders your faith from growing. If you don't pray, then I'm limited to what I can do for you in the spirit, which often means that the problems you face seem to drag on indefinitely. When that happens, in your carnal mind you conclude that My promises to you—whether they are for supply, healing, unity, or whatever your need is—don't actually work. But if you're not praying with fervency and in faith and desperation—the vital factors to effective prayer—then how do you expect to see powerful results?
31. Prayer requires faith. You have to believe that prayer actually works, and that it's more than just a mundane ritual of spiritual goodness. You have to believe wholeheartedly that as you pray, I go to action on your behalf, even though it may take time before you see the full results. Your faith doesn't waver just because an answer is a long time in coming. And because your faith doesn't doubt‚ but keeps trusting, then when I do bring the answer, your faith is increased and strengthened. But without a strong purpose and belief in prayer, your faith misses out on the stretching and growth that comes through putting Me on the spot in utter confidence and expecting that I will do the miracle in the way I know is best.
32. A lack of faith provides fertile ground for the sowing of doubts and confusion‚ a lack of belief in My Word and promises, which, if allowed to go unchecked for an extended period of time, can eventually lead to a disbelief in Me. Is it any wonder then why the Enemy attacks the increase of your faith? It should be no surprise to you as to why he deliberately seeks to put obstacles in your way that keep you from building up your faith.
33. Unconfessed sin, or sin that is allowed to go unchecked, can also hinder your faith. In such instances, it's hard for you to have faith in Me and My Word if you know you are in the wrong in an area of your life and are not fully obeying Me. That in turn can wear away at your faith, because you can't come confidently before My throne expecting an answer (Hebrews 4:16). You instead gingerly tip-toe before Me‚ hoping that I'll answer, but at the same time feeling guilty about your request if you know you're not sticking to the requirements needed to access My blessings and the fruit of your obedience.
34. The causes of a lack of faith differ with the individual. Some are a mixture of the preceding hindrances I brought out, others are more personal, perhaps weights from the past that weigh you down. That's why it's important to regularly seek Me for what might be the cause or hindrance to the increase of your faith. The answer may not always be the same, which is why you will need to make that a question you ask Me frequently.
35. It's also necessary to bring this question before Me when I reveal some new gift or revelation of the spirit to the Family, as it requires faith to believe and receive such gifts. If you do your part and ask Me how to boost your faith, then I will bring the increase needed in order for you to believe what I have promised and accept the new things that I have to offer.
36. (Jesus:) Here are some of the main ways that you can strengthen your faith and rise above the circumstances that might try to drag it down:
37. * Take the Word into your life. Drinking in the Word, absorbing it deep within you on a daily basis, and allowing it to become a part of your life is the most important thing that you can do to boost your faith. "Faith cometh by hearing the Word of God" (Romans 10:17).
38. * Live the Word. Living the Word plays a huge role in the strengthening and effectiveness of your faith. Your faith will be as active as your obedience to the Word. On the other hand, disobedience encages your faith—confines and limits it. When you're disobedient, you cannot have faith that I will bless you or that I will answer your prayers. Disobedience locks up your faith, but confessing your faults‚ asking for My forgiveness, and starting fresh will set your faith free to once again expect great things from Me.
39. * Employ willpower. Faith requires action. Faith means effort. "Faith without works is dead" (James 2:26). It takes work to put your faith into action, to take a stand of faith. So don't take the easy way of letting things remain as they are, but have the willpower to put your faith into action.
40. * Use the positive power of praise. Praise is the voice of faith. Praise invites the fruits of faith into your life. When you praise, it's like pumping up your muscles of faith. Praise prepares your faith for the job at hand: calling down miracles and expecting results.
41. * Overcome discouragement. When you're discouraged‚ you're not praising. Praise strengthens your faith. Discouragement puts your head in the mud instead of lifted to the sky of My promises. Discouragement threatens your faith and eats away at it, which is why it must be fought against with praise.
42. * Eradicate fear and doubt. You must not entertain fears that your faith will fail if you put it into action. Fear and faith cannot coexist; if you pray a prayer of faith, but harbor fear in your heart, then you lack real faith. Will you feed your faith or your fear? Faith is not surprised when I answer; faith expected it. Faith doesn't even consider the possibility of defeat or failure. Faith knows. Is your faith that strong‚ that durable? If not‚ maybe your heart is too full of fears and doubts. Those must be eradicated through the fumigation of My Word if you really want your faith to grow and flourish.
43. * Accept My love and expect great things. You can't have faith if you don't feel worthy of asking for more or greater things from Me, or if you figure that while I may have done a miracle for so-and-so, I can't possibly do the same for you. I don't play favorites; what I did for others, I will do for you too—according to your faith (Matthew 9:29). Every promise in the Bible can be yours, whether you feel worthy of it or not. If you do your part to have faith and meet My conditions, I'll do My part to fulfill the promise. Why don't you apply some of those promises despite your feelings and give Me a chance to prove Myself to you? You are worthy simply because I have deemed you worthy. Now‚ expect great things from Me!
44. * Rise above physical situations and conditions. Do not allow the way things seem in the physical realm to overwhelm you and hinder your faith. You must focus on Me and My power instead. There are difficulties, there are impossibilities, there are huge needs and sometimes setbacks. Then there's Me, the God of the universe, Who supplied the entire world with water, plants, animals, life‚ time, order, seasons, and much more‚ in only six days. Weigh your needs against My greatness and remind yourself that I am more than able. Then ask of Me, focusing only on My ability‚ and I promise that there will be nothing too hard for Me to do for you.
45. * Allow Me to work in your life in the way I deem best. Learn to recognize the way that I use things in your life to strengthen your faith, and yield to them. Grow through the tests that come your way. Hold on when you're going through tough times, and let Me strengthen you. Choose to get the most mileage that you can out of whatever battles you face by looking to Me, by hearing from Me, and by fighting, and then receiving the enhanced faith and confidence that I give you once the battle is over. If you make the right decisions, then the battles and tests and trials of life strengthen your faith rather than weaken it.
46. (Jesus:) The greatest increase to your faith comes through the Word. Faith is built through your intake of My Word. But it is more than just taking in the Word that will increase your faith. You must learn to drink it in and absorb it, making it a part of your life, in order for the Word to take full effect in enlarging your faith.
47. One of the greatest lacks in boosting your faith is if you read the Word without really applying it to your life and striving to make your life a living testimony of My words. Learning to set aside the time to spend with Me and being faithful to it is only the most basic step in your faith–strengthening program. That aspect of your faith-building program is akin to signing up for a workout program and then showing up each day at the gym.
48. However‚ really getting a good workout goes beyond your mere presence; you have to actually follow the workout regimen if you expect to see results. You have to be committed to lift weights to increase your strength, to do something to get your heart pumping in order to feel the benefits of a cardiovascular workout. Often it means pushing yourself a little more than you feel you're capable of, which will gradually increase your strength and stamina.
49. The same is applicable to faith. Just reading the Word will benefit you to a degree, but if you're not really focusing, studying it‚ and putting your energies toward finding that truth that I want to speak to you about for the day, then you're not getting the full spiritual workout that you need that will increase your faith muscles.
50. The Word is the basis of faith enhancement, and that should be the first place you look when you find that your faith is running low or just doesn't seem to be as strong or progressively growing as it should be.
51. (Jesus: ) Every day you have to be willing to strengthen your faith a little more, and here are some practical ways that you can do that:
* Ask Me what seems to you to be a difficult question, and receive My answer in prophecy.
* Fight to memorize and review the Word, even if it's a struggle for you.
* Ask Me to show you a promise in My Word that you can claim as your own, and watch Me fulfill it. It may take a commitment on your part to continue believing that I will do it and continue praying for it, but if you are willing to fulfill your end of the bargain, I will fulfill Mine.
* Pray specifically against the Devil and his demons who fight your faith or try to prevent your intake of the Word.
* Pray specifically for someone that you know, or a situation in the world, and watch Me do miracles—big and small—according to My will. It may take time, but if you are willing to pray for it often and regularly, you will see Me perform a miracle. Importunity in prayer, and persevering in prayer, is a big part of strengthening your faith. If you just pray once, it's like giving one little push in the spirit. If something is almost ready to roll down the hill on its own, sometimes that's enough. But if it's on level ground, or even has to go uphill, then it takes more of a push in the spirit to get it moving.
* Ask Me to speak to you about something that I have in mind for your future, to give you the impetus to grow in faith.
* Praise Me for the gift of faith regularly.
* Learn how to pray better prayers, with more of an attitude of faith, putting Me on the spot and truly claiming a miracle.
* Ask a fellow Family member to tell you about something that I recently did for them in response to their faith, or in answer to their prayer. It doesn't have to be something big; even hearing about the little real-life miracles that I do every day in the lives of others will increase your faith.
* Whenever I answer a prayer, and it's something you asked others to pray with you for, be sure to inform them of the answer. This not only boosts your faith, but theirs as well.
* Ask Me to reveal to you the name of one of your spirit helpers. Or ask Me to reveal to you the name of someone else's spirit helper. This takes faith to do, and anything that takes faith strengthens your faith.
* If you don't yet have one of the gifts of the spirit, such as the gift of prophecy or the gift of tongues‚ ask Me for it, believe that you've received it, and start practicing it (Mark 11:24). When you receive a spiritual gift, your faith in the realm of the spirit and My ability to help you to overcome your carnal mind and nature grows.
* Regularly read something from the Word about faith.
* Ask Me to do something that you think is difficult, and then watch Me do it. If something is My will, and you hold Me to My Word, and you are willing to persevere in prayer, then I will do it. And when I do, your faith will be strengthened.
* When something doesn't turn out the way you prayed it would‚ or I don't seem to answer your prayer‚ ask Me about it. When you find out My reasoning, it makes your faith stronger instead of weaker.
52. (Jesus: ) Faith perseveres to the end. This is what I call "the stand of faith," and it is not an effortless one. After you know something is My will, you know My Word grants you the authority for it, and you are being as obedient as you can be, you can claim My promises and take a stand of faith.
53. But winds and rain and storms of adverse circumstances may come and push you away from the spot you were standing on for a moment. Circumstances and conditions may make it seem like your stand is impossible, that you should give up‚ or settle for less than the best, or compromise just a little. But if you have faith and know and trust My will and My Word, you will reclaim and resume your stand of faith, being fully assured that what I have promised, I am able to perform (Romans 4:21).
54. You will be like Job, who, even though he lost wealth and health and family, was still able to say, "Though He slay me, yet will I trust in Him!" (Job 13:15). You will be like Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego‚ who, even though they were about to be tossed into the furnace, said‚ "Our God in Whom we trust is able to deliver us. But if He doesn't, we'll trust Him anyway!" (Daniel 3:17-18). You will be like Abraham, who staggered not at My promise through unbelief, but trusted that I would raise him up a child, even though he was as good as dead‚ and that I would raise that child from the dead if need be (Romans 4:16-21; Hebrews 11:17–19).
55. You will be like Martha, trusting that I was able to raise Lazarus from the dead even though he had been in the grave four days already (John 11:21–22). You will be like Paul on his voyage to Rome, trusting in My words to him and My deliverance, even though the storm had raged around him for days (Acts 27:22-25). You will be like Joshua, who was willing to merely march his men around Jericho for a week, trusting Me to do the miracle of bringing down the walls (Joshua 6). This is the sure stand of faith.
56. To have faith, make sure something is My will, that My Word grants you the power for it, that you are being obedient, that you are willing to persevere to the end, and take the stand of faith—despite the sight of your eyes, or the reasoning of your mind, or the conditions and circumstances. Then, having done all this, stand. If moved by adverse circumstances, go back and resume your stand. If you do, you will see the answer to your prayers and the good fruit of your faith, even miracles and great and mighty things you hadn't imagined! Then you'll join My other servants who exercised their faith and stood on their faith in My hall of fame in Hebrews 11—the faithful ones, those who were full of faith. Read it often to encourage your faith, dear ones, and claim its promises and the promises I have given you through My Word today.
57. These men and women of old were men and women just like you—men and women full of faults and failings, with like passions‚ like sins, like shortcomings. But they made the decision to trust Me and have faith just because I'd said so, or because My Word said they should. Sometimes their stand of faith went against every evidence of their senses, or every voice of their friends and family—but they stood anyway, they trusted anyway, and they received the promise anyway! They took the stand of faith, nothing wavering‚ determined to please Me and determined to believe My Word—and they did!
58. So can you, My loves! Have faith, maintain your faith, and stand on your faith. According to your faith, so will it be done unto you. Those of great faith will receive great answers. Will you? You can!
59. (Jesus:) There is no substitute for faith, and the faith that I love most is the faith that praises Me no matter what happens. If you really want to strengthen your faith, then work on making your reaction one of praise. This instant response of praise will purify and enlarge your faith.
60. It's also important for you to know how I want you to express your faith. As faith is action, you need to find out from Me what that action means for you and your particular situation. In some instances, I may tell you that your stand of faith needs to be evidenced through praise and prayer alone. Knowing that, you should fight to praise and pray with all your might; that, then, is the action of your faith.
61. Or maybe I will show you that your stand of faith would be to go out and do a new method of witnessing, or to ask for united prayer, or to approach your supporters with your request for funds, or to trust Me for your healing, or to move to a new country‚ or to stay put and endure in the field I've called you to. Perhaps I'll ask you to approach that intimidating person and witness to them, or to take on that project or challenge that you've been hiding from, or even to forsake something that you've been leaning on as a "crutch" that hinders you from fully trusting Me. The action of faith will be different for each individual, for each situation, according to each need.
62. But if you don't know what "action" faith means for you personally, then you will miss the mark on receiving the rewards of faith. If I show you to pray and praise‚ but instead you go out and work in the arm of the flesh, thinking that that's your faith, well, then you'll miss out on the complete fruits the true action of faith could've brought you. Or if you pray and wait around, thinking that that's what faith means to you‚ instead of going out and reaching the lost and petitioning for financial help, you'll also miss out on the full fruits of faith, because you haven't been applying the right action to your faith.
63. So ask Me what action you must apply to your faith. This way you will be using both "oars" of faith and works, and you can be assured of reaching the full blessings I have for you.
An old Scotsman operated a little rowboat for transporting passengers. One day a passenger noticed that the good old man had carved on one oar the word "Faith" and on the other oar the word "Works." Curiosity led him to ask the meaning of this. The old man, being a well-balanced Christian and glad of the opportunity for testimony, said, "I will show you."
So saying, he dropped one oar and plied the other called "Works," and they just went around in circles. Then he dropped that oar and began to ply the oar called "Faith," and the little boat just went around in circles again—this time the other way around, but still in a circle.
After this demonstration the old man picked up "Faith" and "Works‚" and plying both oars together, sped swiftly over the water, explaining to his inquiring passenger, "You see, that is the way it is in the Christian life. Dead works without faith are useless, and 'faith without works is dead' also‚ getting you nowhere. But faith and works pulling together make for safety, progress, and blessing." (Good Thots 2)
64. Remember‚ faith is the evidence of things not seen. That means that when you have faith, that faith is the proof that an answer, a miracle, is on its way. Like a detective on a case, each bit of evidence is a clue leading him to the final answer of the mystery. Your active daily faith is the evidence that will lead you to the miracles of every need. If you want the miracles, tap into your faith and act on it.
65. (Jesus:) Faith—one of My favorite topics to expound on. After all, it's the foundation principle on which your lives are built. It's the means by which you please Me. It's the access code to miracles. It's the core reason you allowed Me into your hearts.
66. Your faith is vital. It is so important for you to exercise your faith so that in the days to come you will be ready to work the great miracles that are promised you. Faith is the key to the fulfillment of many of My promises, which is why it's so important that you turn this key actively and fervently, even when you don't feel pressed to.
67. While there are things that come up in your lives and situations that require faith and prayers of faith, and many of you do rise to those faith challenges and are blessed as a result, it's easy to allow faith to become a response or a resulting action rather than a lifestyle.
68. Within each of you is a large measure of faith. This faith has been storing up within you since the moment My words first entered your heart. That reservoir of faith has grown through each challenge, each experience, each test, and each drop of New Wine received since becoming part of My army.
69. You have faith. Each of you has great faith. And greater faith was a gift that I bestowed on you, My Endtime children. (See "Nothing Is Impossible," ML #3316:38-43 and "God's Greats," ML #3478:35-43.) If any of you are lacking in faith, then that is a result of your lack of drinking in My Word, not My lack in giving to you. You are blessed with faith.
70. But what lies dormant is your ability to actively and consistently wield that faith—not on a desperate-situation basis, but on a 24-7 this–is–my-lifestyle basis. This is what you must do, My loves, in order to be what I need you to be in the days to come.
71. (Jesus:) I want you to live faith. I don't just want you to use it every now and then when situations are dire and needs are desperate. I want you to live in faith. I want "Faith" to be your middle name. Faith is more than just a weapon, more than just an action; faith is a way of living, the reason you live, and the substance within you that compels you to live for Me.
72. Your faith is the evidence that you are Mine. Your faith in Me is what proves to the world that you are Mine. How much proof are you offering? How much evidence can you show for your life? Faith is the substance. Faith is the evidence. Without faith you won't please Me, nor can I please you (Hebrews 11:1,6).
73. To live in faith does not mean that there are what you might consider great manifestations of faith in your life on a daily basis. Those great manifestations of faith come about because you've been living in faith on a daily basis. Living in faith means living My Word. You take My Word and you apply it to your life in every situation.
74. When you pray for your work, you expect Me to answer. When you go about your day‚ you exhibit an attitude of praise and trust in Me. When little problems come up, you respond with praise. When needs arise, you always consider My ability first. Even when you don't feel loving‚ you act loving anyway. You live as you believe I want you to live. You react as you believe I would react. You do all things as unto Me. You fight the spiritual battles and trials even when you feel it's not working or when you wonder if it's worth it.
75. Living in faith is actively living My Word. The more you fight to live by the standards in My Word‚ the more your faith is strengthened. Then as you pass those daily tests of faith, your ability to use your faith grows‚ so that when greater tests or needs arise, you will be able to meet those with a stronger stand of faith.
76. That's how you will be ready to take on the future—by living in faith today. The future will require great faith, such as hasn't been tapped into before, and you will be able to meet that demand for faith if you are faithful to live in faith today.
Copyright © 2007 by The Family International