Listening to the Holy Spirit:
As the river moves, it seems its own power. Mighty waters sweep and churn as if the force is of itself pressing forward, but the force of the water is not of the water; it is of the earth. In its unmoving mass, the earth draws down. Great mass creates the great and powerful motion. By great size, the countless rivers flow, and great life spawns, feeding the sea and the abundance then of the earth. My Father is the immovable of eternity. Faith in Him and the one He has sent, emanates as power unseen, bringing forth great motion in those who believe. “Why do the faithful serve?” they ask. “Why do they give for no return, and grant forgiveness to those who do not show sorrow for their trespass?” “Why do they honor those who have not earned it, and speak kindly of their neighbor?” “Why do they feed those who do not know them, and protect those who realize not their Guardian?” “Why do they lift words to the air, and worship a God they do not see?” “Why do they love those who hate and give drink to their enemy?” Faith is the power of the faithful. As the river is drawn by the earth, the Saints of God do not run by their own legs, but rather on the hope of the unseen – the great force of the Father within them, that all might be drawn to the Son. In this blessed motion, great power is displayed as the follower is propelled by his faith, not in his own strength, but by faith that saves and allows the lame to leap and run toward his God.
Matt 6:30 (ESV) – But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?
Matt 14:30-31 (ESV) – But when he saw the wind, he was afraid, and beginning to sink he cried out, “Lord, save me.” Jesus immediately reached out his hand and took hold of him, saying to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?”
Heb 11:6 (ESV) – And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God (must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.
Taking It to Work:
When I was a new believer, I remember reading in Hebrews the phrase, “Without faith, you cannot please God.” I couldn’t understand why faith is so necessary. When Peter was scared and sinking in the water, when Jesus reaches out to save him, He immediately gets on to Peter about his lack of faith. And when He speaks to us about our worries, in the Sermon on the Mount, He calls to our attention our lack of faith. Over and over the Lord emphasizes that faith in Him is absolutely required.
Required for what? Everything where we want His power to anoint and bless, including this new year we are about to jump into.
Just as earth’s invisible gravity is the true source of a river’s visible power, our power as Christians is due to the unseen faith that drew us to God in the first place, and gives us the power to run faithfully with Him throughout our lives. When we are really “flowing” in the Spirit, others see our lives and wonder, “What?” “How do they do it?” “Why do they live like that?” They don’t understand. We walk, work, and interact with the world very differently than what they would expect. We seem to have this power, even through trials, sickness and other challenges. They watch as we walk in a peace and strength they just don’t understand.
They may already understand that unseen gravity drives the river, but we need to let them know, it is our unseen faith in Jesus Christ that drives our lives.
If you really want your next year to be happy, at work, home, and in your personal walk, start with the #1 goal to increase your ability to walk in faith. Pray for it. Seek God for it. and when you feel His prompting, jump in, so this time next year, you will have pleased God with your faith in Him, as you allow Him to sweep you down river, as His Word works though you, today.
