HOW TO GROW YOUR FAITH
(PART II)
“For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit.” (Romans 8:5).
There are two forces we face daily. The flesh and the Spirit. These two war one against the other. We cannot live by faith if we are in the flesh hence Paul writes, “Walk in the Spirit and ye shall not fulfil the lusts of the flesh. For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things ye would” (Galatians 5:16-17).
Faith, wherever it exists, needs to be fed and to be nurtured for it to grow. Faith can only grow if we mind the things of the Spirit (Romans 8:5) and walk in the Spirit (Galatians 5:25). If and when we do, we will see our lives with spiritual eyes. We will see through what a preacher in Israel said, “seeing through the transcended vision”. We will understand our circumstances with a different perspective, the perspective that our God is bigger and better than our problems. We serve a God who is merciful and kind, who is strong and mighty, He is mighty in battle and mighty also to save (Psalms 24: 8; 10).
When we are in the Spirit, the Lord will give us strength to wait on Him (Isaiah 40:31) and to trust him even in the heat of our temptations, in the midst of a raging storm and during our midnight hour. Whether it is the faith to keep the commandments and live righteously, or it is the faith to believe that God will deliver us from our trials and problems, or the faith to overcome, it is by living in the Spirit that we gain strength to hold on until we receive our petitions or until we overcome our trials and temptations. When we look on Jesus and not on the storm, we can walk on the stormy sea.
“And when Peter was come down out of the ship, he walked on the water, to go to Jesus. But when he saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink, he cried, saying Lord save me. And immediately Jesus stretched out his hand and caught him and said unto him, O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?” (St. Matthew 14:29-31).
The common enemies of faith are worry, fear and doubt. These enemies will also eat away even the little faith until there’s none left. Lack of faith hinders our Spiritual Growth and limits our spiritual experiences. Peter would not have known that he too could walk on the water (St. Matthew 14: 28-31). Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego would not have known that with God, the fire does not have power over them (Daniel 3:1-30). “And Abraham, being not weak in faith, he considered not his own body now dead, when he was about an hundred years old, neither yet the deadness of Sara’s womb: He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God; And being fully persuaded that, what he had promised, he was able also to perform.” (Romans 4:19-21).
So, what does it take to grow our faith? Feeding ourselves with the word of God is the beginning. Then we must add faith. To believe no matter what, no matter how long, no matter the circumstances. Believe that all things are possible (St. Mark 9:23). Don’t give up, don’t be discouraged, don’t quit, call those things which be not as though they are (Romans 4:17), “for without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him.” (Hebrews 11:6).