LOVE AND TRUST

Matthew 9:18, "While he spake these things unto them, behold, there came a certain ruler, and worshipped him, saying, My daughter is even now dead: but come and lay thy hand upon her, and she shall live."

MATTHEW 9:18-19

Jesus could have healed this girl by His spoken word, but He did as He was requested to do. This illustrates how the Lord ministers to us according to our faith. Jesus ministered to him at the level where his faith was and didn't rebuke his little faith (Jas. 1:5).

There is a human faith which is limited to believing only what we can perceive through our five senses. But the supernatural, God kind of faith goes beyond what we can see, taste, hear, smell, and feel. God's kind of faith calls those things which be not as though they already were.

Start With a Step

By Greg Laurie , Christian Post Contributor

So He said, "Come." And when Peter had come down out of the boat, he walked on the water to go to Jesus.
- Matthew 14:29

Sometimes people are critical of Peter because he sank during his walk on the water to Jesus. But apart from Jesus himself, Peter is the only one to ever walk on water. And, by the way, it wasn't a presumptuous act on Peter's part. He did ask permission, and Jesus granted it.

I can imagine Peter swinging one leg over the side of the boat and testing his weight a little. Next, he brings the other leg around. Soon, he is standing on the water. Then he takes a step . . . then another step.

But the waves were high, the sea was rough, and Peter probably thought, What am I doing? Then he began to sink.

Little Faith or Great Faith?

And he [Jesus] saith unto them, why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith? —Matthew 8:26

Halfway across the Galilee, the disciples became frightened and woke Jesus, saying, "Don't you care that we perish?" Jesus stilled the storm and rebuked the disciples for not moving on in their faith. How do we grow from the "little faith" of whiny Christians to the "great faith" of Christians who are strong in their faith?

Every day that your mind is renewed in the Word of God, your soul is brought up to a higher level of faith-filled living. Your mind is more renewed in the Word of God today than it was yesterday. I don't spoon-feed my children as I did when they were babies. Don't stop with the milk of His Word; eat the meat. Devour the bread of life. The more meat of His Word that you digest, the stronger your faith will become.

God expects us to mature and become strong in our faith. The stronger we become, the more glory we give Him. Strengthen yourself in the Word, exercise your faith, and go from whining in the boat to unwavering faith.

Your Faith Is Your Answer!

 by E. Davenport !

You have a need to get an answer. It is done as long as you have gone before God in faith which is believing He can make it happen. The good news is He can. The bad news is that the forces of hell will try to convince you that the situation is hopeless! DON’T FALL FOR THAT!

Don't Look at the Storm

"But when he saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me. And immediately Jesus stretched forth his hand, and caught him, and said unto him, O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?" (Matthew 14:30-31)

If there's any way the devil can get your eyes away from the Word, he'll do it. He'll cause trouble. He'll make the circumstances around you pitch and roll like a rowboat in a hurricane. 

He'll do anything he can to get you to concentrate on the realm of the physical senses and the situation around you instead of on the promise of God--because he knows that if he doesn't, you'll take that promise and beat his brains out with it.That's what he did to Peter. When Peter first jumped out of the boat that day in response to Jesus' word, what happened? He walked right across that water without a problem. His whole being was fastened on that word Jesus had spoken to him, "Come!"

THE ONLY LIMIT TO FAITH

Romans 10:17 - Faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.

When people struggle with their faith in God, it's not because their faith-object is insufficient. It's because people have unreal expectations of God. They expect Him to operate a certain way or answer prayer a certain way--their way, not His--and when He doesn't comply they say, "Forget You, God." But God doesn't change; He's the perfect faith-object. Faith in God only fails when people hold a faulty understanding of Him.

 If you want your faith in God to increase, you must increase your understanding of Him as the object of your faith. If you have little knowledge about God and His Word, you will have little faith. If you have great knowledge of God and His Word, you will have great faith. Faith cannot be pumped up by coaxing yourself, "If only I can believe! If only I can believe!" Any attempt to push yourself beyond what you know about God and his ways is to move from faith to presumption. You choose to believe God according to what you already know to be true from His Word. And the only way to increase your faith is to increase your knowledge of God, your faith-object (Romans 10:17).