faith…a big little word

so if you know me at all, you know that at any given time, i will drop a ‘you know guys, people are dying and going to hell; we’ve got bigger things to worry about…’  which is really my way of coping with the craziness that is the world around me. you know, someone cutting you off in traffic, forgetting the power cable to your pedals, having to make crazy decisions that arent always fun…  but as i thought about that saying this morning in my time with the Lord, i realized that my statement is so much bigger than i give ever realized….

i chat with my friend, annabeth, who is from my area, but currently living in Israel (the country) serving the Lord, doing who knows what 🙂 – that’s our joke… shout out annab!  she gave me these thoughts as we chatted about faith today: ‘a pretty good definition i heard was this : Faith responds to Gods character and Gods written word’ & ‘faith is not based on knowledge but it is also not brainless or blind. It is not based on what you know but on what God has said’

i love the thought that faith is not ‘brainless’… christianity is viewed brainless at times- and rightfully so… so many in the name of Jesus do some pretty radical thing… and radical in this context means no common sense whatsoever. it’s just like we talked about, faith isn’t something one does out of ignorance. just because you have faith the the three legged chair will hold you up, doesn’t mean it will. the tough thing about faith is that it’s one thing to talk about it, it’s a completely other thing to have it.

like in annabeth’s case, every day that they have been in Israel has been a time to practice their faith. she and her peeps are in a country where folks arent always open and willing to hear the gospel- want to know a sombering thought: neither are people in the USA. but i digress…

she and her friends have been constantly living out the gospel through loving those around them and sharing their faith as much as they can…they’ve steadily been getting in God’s word seeing what He has to say about faith and His promises… seems easy? well, in the last 12hrs, a bus was blown up in jerusalem, which is about an hour from where they are living. the hostility in the country is growing by the minute… now where does your faith stand?

should that not be happening to her b/c she’s doing ‘the Lord’s work’? should she stay on and ‘trust she is protected’? maybe come home b/c things are escalating rapidly and God gave her a brain to know when to go?… all are valid questions… so where does one’s faith play into all of this?

personally, i think it starts in the very beginning. the very moment you said ‘yes’ to Jesus and your heart was changed, your faith began. His word is what strengthens your faith every day, so that when you are faced with craziness, you know what God’s word says and you can stand on it. not waivering… knowing HE that has called you is faithful and HE will do it – 1Thes.5:24…

i ask that you pray for my friend, annabeth, and her friends. they are brave just by being in a foreign nation and showing the love of Jesus; but friend, we can do that right here at home… and not just grow our faith, but that of those around us as well….