Soul Care - Faith
by Mary Ellsbury
1985 was a really hard year for me. My marriage was heading for divorce, my dearest aunt died, and I was diagnosed with breast cancer all in the span of four months. And I was dealing with a five-year-old, had no job and no permanent place to live. I sat at the edge of my bed and just wept. I didn’t have family to provide a safety net. But I did have the promise that God will never leave me or forsake me. I had the promise that He would give me a hope and a future. Many people would have thrown in the towel, but I had my faith.
Faith doesn’t focus on circumstances or what people think. Strong faith focuses on what God says. Hebrews 11:1 says, “Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.” You need to stand firm in the Word of God and believe that He will fulfill His promise.
Cultivating a relationship with God and His Word is key. Developing a faith that can withstand divorce, sickness, and loss doesn’t happen overnight. It takes time. Here are a few things that I have learned over the years.
God is worthy of trust and praise. Scripture tells us that He is good, wise, full of love. God is all powerful, yet he knows you and has counted every hair on your head. We are told to “Humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you (1 Peter 5:6-7).” Even when I felt the crushing weight of life, I could rest knowing that God cares about me.
God’s promises are true. The Word is full of what God will do on your behalf. He will do more than we can ever imagine (Ephesians 3:20); if we seek Him, we will find Him (Matthew 6:33); we will not lack anything (James 1:2-5); and we will have eternal life (John 3:15). Faith needs to be attached to the unbreakable promises of God. If God promises it, you can believe it.
God is always faithful. I keep a journal and when I feel like my life is getting out of hand, I can look back and see that God was faithful in the past and I can depend on Him to continue. God doesn’t change – He is the same yesterday, today, and forever (Hebrews 13:8).
Faith is a muscle that needs to be used daily. Make the Bible a part of your daily routine. Keep track of your prayers – and then watch how God answers them. Go to church, get into a group that studies the Word of God. Ask questions. Learn from older believers. Serve your community. Share what God has done for you. As a result, you will grow stronger in your faith.
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I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge - that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. Ephesians 3:16-19 NIV
