“For through the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think more highly of himself than he ought to think; but to think so as to have sound judgment, as God has allotted to each a measure of faith.“ (Rom 12:3-4 NASU)
Last week in FREEDOM FROM FEAR, Part 9, we learned that we are all born with a measure of faith, but just like a muscle, it must be exercised and developed. The proper prayer is not, “God, give me faith!” He’s already done that. The proper prayer is, “God, please help me to exercise my faith so that it can grow!”
But how do we go about growing that faith?
When I want to develop a muscle, I need to exercise it. Take, for instance, the muscles of my upper arms (which ARE really as spindly as described in last week’s devotional!). In order to develop these muscles, I must surround myself with ways to exercise them, and I need to do it on a semi-daily basis.
So let’s say I join a local club, and I decide to go in 4 times a week, specifically to work my biceps and triceps. When I first arrive, I would be crazy to try and bench press 50 pounds, and likely, even 20 pounds! (Yes, they really are THAT weak!) What I should do instead, is begin to work with 2 pounds, and when my muscles accustom themselves to these tiny weights, I’ll move up to 5 pounds, etc.
In addition to their exercise at the club, I will also try to find other ways during the week to exercise these growing muscles. For example, I must not avoid riding that mare I mentioned last week who didn’t come equipped with brakes. The more I continue to ride her, the more my muscles will grow!
In a similar fashion, I cannot expect my faith to be strong enough to stand up to the huge trials of life if I don’t make it a habit of exercising it with the tiny, everyday things. Take time management, for example. I struggle with not having enough time, and there isn’t much that can stress me out more than putting something new on my already overflowing plate. I mean, there ARE only 24 hours in a day, and I DO need to sleep at least a few of those! One way to exercise my faith with my 2 and 5 pound weights is to begin with putting my time in God’s hands: “Lord, you know I don’t have the time to drive these kids to school, but they missed their bus, so I put my time in your hands! Thank you for providing the time I need!” And then, the moment the worry about time begins to creep back in (and it will!), I need to give it immediately back to God.
The little things look different for different people. Some worry about getting sick. Some worry about whether their spouse or kids will come home safely. Some worry about being robbed. All of these things are little 2 and 5 pound weights! The idea is, identify what you are worried about, especially the tiny things, and begin growing your faith by putting these things in God’s hands. And then by putting them back in God’s hands the moment the worry begins to creep back in!
When we exercise our faith daily in the little things, it will grow stronger, until it is strong enough to stand up to the big problems that WILL arise! But we must start small!
Remember, we can’t just beg God to give us faith. He’s already done that. Our job is to exercise it in all of the little daily things we do.
There’s one other thing I’ve learned from riding this brake-less mare. I’ve learned that the more uptight I am, the less likely I will ever be that she will respond to my tiny tugs on the reins. I’ve learned that if I can just sit back and relax, she will be much more likely to come back under control. But even if she doesn’t, I’ve learned that I won’t fall off! The worst that can happen is that I sit back and enjoy a very exciting ride!
It is the same when we rest in Jesus. The more worried we are and the more we demand help, the less likely we will be to hear His voice of comfort and strength. But when we learn to trust that no matter how wild the ride, we are always safe in His arms, then we can relax and enjoy the excitement of the ride.
Remember friends, we are all given an element of faith. It is our job to practice growing that faith on a daily basis. Only when we do will we be able to stand up to the tests of life. Why not start today?
Join us next Saturday for FREEDOM FROM FEAR, The Conclusion.
In His love,
Lyn
Lyn Chaffart, Mother of two teens, Author and Moderator for The Nugget, a tri-weekly internet newsletter, and Scriptural Nuggets, a website devoted to Christian devotionals and inspirational poems, www.scripturalnuggets.org , with Answers2Prayer Ministries, www.Answers2Prayer.org .
(To access the entire “Freedom From Fear” mini-series, please click here.)