“These trials are only to test your faith, to see whether or not it is strong and pure. It is being tested as fire tests gold and purifies it—and your faith is far more precious to God than mere gold.“—1 Peter 1:7, TLB
Oh, to have more faith! If only we could give up worry, anxiety, and fear and live with confidence that God has it all under control.
If the medications consumed in our modern world are any indication, we are a people plagued by anxiety.
Antidepressants, anti-anxiety, antacids, and pain relievers are among the most prescribed drugs in our society. While some of our symptoms reflect our human condition, many of our ailments reveal a society lacking in living, life-altering faith.
Faith is an interesting substance. You can’t get it by attending a Bible study. You don’t learn it just by talking about it. You certainly can’t get it by hoping, thinking, and wishing for it.
But you can pray for faith—and then watch for what happens!
Faith, like muscle, develops by being used.
The more you exercise a muscle, the stronger it gets. The more you are forced to live by faith, the more you are stretched and challenged, and your faith grows stronger. That’s what Peter meant in the verse above.
Your faith is more precious than gold. It will enrich your life more than any money or precious items. Your faith is God’s gift to you, one that He desires to strengthen and enlarge so He can bless your life.
“God delights to increase the faith of His children. Our faith, which is feeble at first, is developed and strengthened more and more by us. We ought, instead of wanting no trials before victory, no exercise for patience, to be willing to take them from God’s hand as a means. I say —and say it deliberately—trials, obstacles, difficulties, and sometimes defeats, are the very food of faith.” —George Mueller
