"I will be with you constantly until I have finished giving you everything that I have promised."
Genesis 28:15
Yesterday, my son Josh took the Underway Commitment in our community. That means he promises to investigate our way of life by practicing it. He commits to pray every day, to faithfully participate in our activities, to tithe, etc. I was very happy. Josh grew up in community but he can't inherit faith or a relationship with God from us, his parents. He has to experience this himself just as Jacob, Abraham's grandson, had to get to know God and His promises for Himself.
"Jesus could work no miracle there...so much did their lack of faith distress Him." Mark 6: 5
Do we need a miracle? I think most of us do! We need to work on our lack of faith then. It says in the Bible that faith comes from hearing God's message about Christ. (Romans 10:17) If we want miracles, we should faithfully read the Bible, ALOUD, to ourselves, and do everything to embed that Word in our hearts. We can also go to Youtube, or turn on an audio Bible to listen to God's Word. We should go to Church, prayer meetings, Bible study groups, and be among fellow believers so our faith will be built up. We should testify about our faith, what little we have, for when we share what God is doing in our life, our faith is enkindled. We should preach to ourselves, which is what I do every morning, when I write this. We should be proactive about faith building, not complacent.
I believe there is so much God wants to do in our life, but our lack of faith prevents Him NOW. Let us build up our faith, so He can work wonders! Let us get to know Jesus. He is the author, perfecter and finisher of our faith (Hebrews 12:2). He is so eager to help us grow our faith!
"Nobody sews a piece of unshrunken cloth on an old cloak... " Matthew 9:16
Brian Houston, Senior Pastor of Hillsong Church in Sydney, tells a story of when all of a sudden almost of his choir left and he was wondering what was happening. Some even started singing in a nearby church. Then new people came to join the choir, and compose new songs. Darlene Zschech started composing songs like "Shout to the Lord" which eventually was sung all around the world in praise and worship. Now the Hillsong Music label has produced so many albums blessing millions around the world. God wanted to bring fresh new music to the world and He couldn't do it with Brian's 'old' choir.
There's a place for the 'old' in God's world, but if He wants to bring change, He uses people He can mold and teach. People who can expand their thinking with a new vision. Am I that kind of person?
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Thank you for sharing your reflection, Patsy... so inspiring. :-)
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing your reflection, Patsy... so inspiring. :-)
ReplyDeleteI really like what you said about preaching to yourself each morning. Your bible art is gorgeous; I especially like the hands.
ReplyDeletehugs,
Teresa
Another inspiring insight. Sometimes it's hard to listen to His voice when He wants us to do something. Sometimes it's hard to answer because we doubt our abilities. But God calls us because He knows we are people He can count on.
ReplyDeleteGreat arts as usual. :)