Word for the day by Christian Education Forum

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Equipping The People of God: Faith
Hebrews 11:1-16
 

Roshan Varughese
Epiphany MTC, NY

v.13 “All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance, admitting that they were foreigners and strangers on earth.”


Do you know what path you are going in life? Do you have a set goal or plan for the future? Are you at the end of your road and now just going on cruise control for the rest of your journey? Well the reality is, as long as you have breath in you, God’s not finished with you! There is always work for you to do. It is our Christian obligation and mission to spread the Word and be always ready to serve God.

In order for us to be ready for our mission, we have to be mentally, physically and spiritually ready. The first aspect is having Faith. We should ask ourselves, what is faith? According to the dictionary, “it is the complete trust or confidence in someone or something,” and there comes the challenge. Human faith can only trust and believe what it can see, taste, hear, smell or feel. But the faith God wants from us goes beyond what is tangible. According to Hebrews 11:1-16, “Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.”  Hebrews 11:1-16 is often called “Faith Hall of Fame”, as we witness the faith of some of the heroes in the Bible.  When we look into the Scripture we come to the realization what faith genuinely can do in our lives and how it can better equip us to serve God.

1.Faith can make us offer our best to God
1.If we put our 110% effort for God, we will definitely feel fulfilled. It was by “faith Abel offered God a greater sacrifice than Cain, and through his faith he was commended as righteous”. –Heb. 11:4
2.Faith can make your household be saved.
1.Having faith in our family begins with trusting in God. We are able to go through the challenges of life and never give up because of our faith. It is because of faith Noah built an ark to save his family. “By his faith he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness that is in keeping with faith.” –Heb. 11:7
3.Faith helps us get out of our comfort zone
1.Faith gives us the confidence to make bold moves regarding our future. Through faith we are able to “take risks”. We see how through faith Abraham, “when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, he obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going.” – Heb. 11:8
Sometimes God’s plan are so much greater than our plans, that all we can do is keep faith in the One who always knows what is good for us. In order for us to be ready to serve, we must have faith, even when the reward may not be seen in our lifetime.

PRAYER

Dear Heavenly Father, help us to have faith in You even though we can’t see You. Lord, we pray that we will continue to grow in Faith so that we can be men and women of faith. We pray that our faith will only grow stronger so that we can be equipped to serve You. Please use our life to bring others to You. Amen.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:
Faith does not make things easy, it makes them possible. 

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