2025-11-04
James 2:22 NIV
If you really believed God’s Word concerning your situation, how would you act differently? Saying you believe is just the beginning; activating your faith means preparing for the answer to arrive. Ask yourself, “If I really expected an answer to my prayers, how would I prepare for its arrival?”
In Scripture, Jesus gave His disciples this parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man… planted in his field… when it grows, it… becomes a tree'” (Matthew 13:31-32 NIV). The farmer may sincerely believe he can produce a mustard tree, but nothing happens until he chooses the location, prepares the soil, plants the seed, and continually waters it. Once he does all those things, he can actively watch for its appearance. So, where do you start?
(1) Pray for wisdom to make the right decisions (See James 1:5-7).
(2) Plan your work, and work your plan. Aimless, passive waiting for the things to materialize without thoughtful, active involvement will prove disappointing and fruitless. God uses you as His partner. “We are labourers together with God” (1 Corinthians 3:9 KJV).
(3) Break your plan into small, accomplishable action steps.
(4) Don’t wait for the fear to go or the faith to grow. Be prepared to take calculated, productive risks. Feel the fear and do it anyhow!
(5) Start thanking God even before you can see the answer. And if you should miss the bull’s-eye, remember the Revolutionary War militia’s response: “Ready, aim, fire!” Adjust your aim – and fire again. “[Abraham’s] faith and his actions were working together.” And that’s still the Bible formula for success.
Soul food: 1 Chr 10:1-12:22; John 8:42-59; Ps 49; Prov 25:18-20
2025-11-03
James 2:17 NIV
James asks, “What good is it… if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds… Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says… ‘Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,’ but does nothing… what good is it? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead. But someone will say, ‘You have faith; I have deeds.’ Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by my deeds” (vv.14-18 NIV).
A veritable ocean of faith without the appropriate action to follow it up is nothing more than an ocean of dead, useless faith. On the other hand, an ounce of faith that’s acted upon can produce an ocean of results (See Matthew 13:31-32). Action breathes life and power into your faith. The biblical prescription for faith is simple but potent.
(1) You decide to believe in God’s promise and His power to make it happen – leaving the “how and when” up to Him.
(2) You choose to act in keeping with what you believe before you see any evidence of the results.
(3) God responds to your faith by keeping His unbreakable promise.
“Hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?” (Numbers 23:19 KJV). God goes to work exercising His unlimited capacity to perform His Word. Jesus said, “Whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours” (Mark 11:24 NIV). Now – it’s up to you to claim and act on His promise.
Soul food: 1 Chr 7:20-9:44; John 8:31-41; Ps 30; Prov 25:13-17
2025-11-02
Romans 12:3 NKJV
Thank God, faith isn’t reserved for deeply spiritual people. If that was the case, we would all be in trouble! The fact is that regular people from all walks of life can be faith filled. We’re inclined to think faith belongs exclusively to people like Abraham, Moses, Elijah, Samuel, David, Daniel, Peter, and Paul. Now, without question, they were all faith heroes, but faith doesn’t belong solely to them. The Bible tells us, “God has dealt to each one a measure of faith.” No one will miss out on heaven because he or she wasn’t given enough faith to “believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and be saved” (See Acts 16:31).
God intended that not only should we have faith but that we should live by faith. Three times the New Testament assures us “the just shall live by faith” (Hebrews 10:38 NKJV). You reply, “Yes, but those biblical heroes had great faith; my faith is so small!” Did you know that the apostles felt the same way? They said to Jesus, “Increase our faith!” (Luke 17:5 NIV). And Jesus replied, “If you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it will obey you” (v. 6 NIV.)
Like so many of us, the apostles thought they needed more faith. But Jesus corrected this spiritually crippling misperception by telling them you don’t need a truckload of faith to see amazing outcomes. “Faith as small as a mustard seed” can bring about awesome results. When you put the faith, you already have been given into action, Jesus said it will produce results!
Soul food: Gen 5:22-24; Heb 11:5; 2 Ki 2:1-12; Acts 1:9-11
2025-11-01
Hebrews 11:1 TLB
Faith has little to do with religion or what church you attend. The Greek definition of the word “faith” is pistis, which means a firm persuasion, a conviction based on hearing and learning. Some other words that help to define faith are trust, confidence, and believing.
And for good measure, here are a few scriptural descriptions of faith: “The confident assurance that something we want is going to happen… the certainty that what we hope for is waiting for us, even though we cannot see it up ahead.” The Bible tells us, “Without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him” (v. 6 NIV). It also tells us, “Faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word about Christ” (Romans 10:17 NIV). And the apostle James writes, “Faith… not accompanied by action, is dead” (James 2:17 NIV).
Faith, though it may be felt, isn’t a feeling at all. The fact is, you can have faith and feel nothing, and you can feel nothing and still have faith. Nor is it related to intellectual or theological knowledge. Your IQ and level of education have nothing to do with your capacity to exercise faith. Effective faith calls for an act of your will. It’s a choice you make to fully embrace what God says in His Word. When that happens, it creates a heart climate that motivates you to act in keeping with what you choose to believe. That’s faith in a nutshell!
Soul food: 1 Chr 17:1-20; Heb 11:4-12:3; Ps 18:20-29; Prov 4:18
2025-05-23
Luke 6:45 NIV
Do you think of yourself as a person who has faith in God? Do your thoughts and words reflect that? We can deceive ourselves into thinking we have great faith, but if challenges easily defeat us, then maybe our faith isn’t as great as we thought it was. Jesus said, “The mouth speaks what the heart is full of.” You can learn a lot about yourself by listening to what you say. Do your thoughts and words show your dependence on God, recognizing that His abilities, not yours, enable you to do anything you need to do?
To get your words right, you must get your heart right. And to do that, you must line your thinking up with God’s Word. That means being willing to face anything He wants to show you and asking Him to change you. If you’re trusting in your own strength, start trusting God instead. If you’re attempting to do things through your own abilities and becoming irritated, let God know that you want Him to work through you, and allow His sufficiency to be yours. Paul writes, “Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think of anything as being from ourselves, but our sufficiency is from God” (2 Corinthians 3:5 NKJV).
Your words are like containers, so don’t fill them with things that disable you. Instead, stand on this Scripture: “God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work” (2 Corinthians 9:8 NIV). When you speak, always agree with God’s Word.
Soul food: 1 Ki 16:1-18:15; Mark 9:30-37; Ps 108; Prov 12:14
