Biblical Mothers of Faith

I recently spent several days with my mother, who is 92 years old. Although I talk to her nearly every week I hadn't seen her in nearly three years. A lot has changed and happened in my life since I last saw her, including the death of her daughter-in-law, my wife earlier this year. This was the first time that I had seen her without Ruth. Mother doesn’t drive anymore and she moves a lot slower, her memory fails her sometimes but given some time she does remember, but her mind is still clear and she is aware of what is going on around her. When I made my reservations to visit her I didn’t realize that I would be coming home just a few days before Mother’s Day so I won’t be spending it with her. My brother is still there and my sister lives close so they will be there. Since I won’t be there I’m dedicating this post to her.

In thinking about and doing some research for this post “Mothers of Faith” I ran across this hymn,  “Faith of Our Mothers” with words written in 2013 by Lawrence A. Wik, to the tune of ST. CATHERINE, by Henri F. Hemy, 1864; adapt. by James G. Walton, 1874. I thought it was very appropriate for this post.

I consider my mother a hero, or if you prefer "shero". I’m sure that you consider your mothers heroes too. I believe that God considers mothers heroes as well because the bible contains many accounts of heroic mothers of faith.

The bible speaks very highly of those with faith. There is an entire chapter in the book of Hebrews that identifies heroes of faith. I talk a lot about people of faith in this blog. Most of the people mentioned in the bible, and in this blog, when talking about faith are men and fathers. That certainly doesn't mean that men have more faith than women or men’s faith somehow is more powerful than that of women, and mothers. A quick look at church attendance, and who gets things done in our churches will tell you that’s not the case. In fact it may even be the other way around. I’m just kidding of course but there are many mothers of faith who we can learn a lot from by studying them and their stories.

Mothers of Faith

Eve

Genesis 3:20 (HCSB) Adam named his wife Eve because she was the mother of all the living.

Eve was the first woman and the first mother. Without a single role model or mentor, she paved the maternal way to become "Mother of All the Living." She and Adam lived in Paradise, but they spoiled it by listening to Satan instead of God. Eve suffered terrible grief when her son Cain murdered his brother Abel, yet despite these tragedies, Eve went on to fulfill her part in God's plan of populating the Earth.

Sarah

Everybody has heard of Sarah, Abraham’s wife she’s mentioned in Hebrews 11 along with the heroes of faith;

Hebrews 11:11 (HCSB) By faith even Sarah herself, when she was unable to have children, received power to conceive offspring, even though she was past the age, since she considered that the One who had promised was faithful.

Abraham and Sarah with their son Isaac

Sarah was one of the most important women in the Bible. She was the wife of Abraham, which made her the mother of the nation of Israel. Yet Sarah was barren. She conceived through a miracle in spite of her old age. Sarah was a good wife, a loyal helper and builder with Abraham. Her faith serves as a shining example for every person who has to wait on God to act.

Genesis 21:1-3 (HCSB) 1 The LORD came to Sarah as He had said, and the LORD did for Sarah what He had promised. 2 Sarah became pregnant and bore a son to Abraham in his old age, at the appointed time God had told him. 3 Abraham named his son who was born to him—the one Sarah bore to him—Isaac.

Jochebed

Jochebed, the mother of Moses, is one of the under appreciated mothers in the Bible, yet she also showed tremendous faith in God. To avoid the mass slaughter of Hebrew boys, she set her baby adrift in the Nile River, hoping someone would find him and raise him. God so worked that her baby was found by Pharaoh's daughter. Jochebed even became her own son's nurse. God used Moses mightily, to free the Hebrew people from their 400 year bondage of slavery and take them to the Promised Land. Although little is written about Jochebed in the Bible, her story speaks powerfully to mothers of today.

Exodus 6:20 (HCSB) Amram married his father’s sister Jochebed, and she bore him Aaron and Moses. Amram lived 137 years.


Exodus 2:1-10 (HCSB) 1 Now a man from the family of Levi married a Levite woman. 2 The woman became pregnant and gave birth to a son; when she saw that he was beautiful, she hid him for three months. 3 But when she could no longer hide him, she got a papyrus basket for him and coated it with asphalt and pitch. She placed the child in it and set it among the reeds by the bank of the Nile. 4 Then his sister stood at a distance in order to see what would happen to him. 5 Pharaoh’s daughter went down to bathe at the Nile while her servant girls walked along the riverbank. Seeing the basket among the reeds, she sent her slave girl to get it. 6 When she opened it, she saw the child—a little boy, crying. She felt sorry for him and said, “This is one of the Hebrew boys.” 7 Then his sister said to Pharaoh’s daughter, “Should I go and call a woman from the Hebrews to nurse the boy for you?” 8 “Go,” Pharaoh’s daughter told her. So the girl went and called the boy’s mother. 9 Then Pharaoh’s daughter said to her, “Take this child and nurse him for me, and I will pay your wages.” So the woman took the boy and nursed him. 10 When the child grew older, she brought him to Pharaoh’s daughter, and he became her son. She named him Moses, “Because,” she said, “I drew him out of the water.”

Hannah

Hannah was the mother of the great prophet Samuel, who anointed Saul Israel’s first king, and David, perhaps it’s greatest king. Hannah would go to Shiloh year after year, with her husband, Elkanah, and his other wife, to worship and sacrifice. Every year Elkanah’s second wife, Peninnah, would ridicule her because she couldn't have children, especially a son. Hannah didn’t give up though. She continued to pray and ask God for a son. In her prayer she told God that if He would give her a son that she would give him back to serve Him. God did bless her, she conceived and had a son, Samuel.

1 Samuel 1:19-20, 27-28 (HCSB) 19 The next morning Elkanah and Hannah got up early to bow in worship before the LORD. Afterward, they returned home to Ramah. Then Elkanah was intimate with his wife Hannah, and the LORD remembered her. 20 After some time, Hannah conceived and gave birth to a son. She named him Samuel, because ⌊she said⌋, “I requested him from the LORD.” 27 I prayed for this boy, and since the LORD gave me what I asked Him for, 28 I now give the boy to the LORD. For as long as he lives, he is given to the LORD.” Then he bowed in worship to the LORD there.

Hannah honored her promise and as a result she had five more children, including three more sons.

1 Samuel 2:21 (HCSB) The LORD paid attention to Hannah’s ⌊need⌋, and she conceived and gave birth to three sons and two daughters. Meanwhile, the boy Samuel grew up in the presence of the LORD.

The widow of Zarephath

This is the widow who Elijah asked for some bread during a famine. She told him that she only had a little bit of flour and oil and she was going to bake some bread for her and her son to eat and then they would die. Elijah told her to not be afraid and go ahead and make the bread for him and afterward she would always have flour and oil until the famine was over. She did and she had food to eat throughout the famine. Later her son got sick and died.

Elijah and the widow who shared

1 Kings 17:17-18, 21-24 (HCSB) 17 After this, the son of the woman who owned the house became ill. His illness became very severe until no breath remained in him. 18 She said to Elijah, “Man of God, what do we have in common? Have you come to remind me of my guilt and to kill my son?” 21 Then he stretched himself out over the boy three times. He cried out to the LORD and said, “My LORD God, please let this boy’s life return to him!”22 So the LORD listened to Elijah’s voice, and the boy’s life returned to him, and he lived.23 Then Elijah took the boy, brought him down from the upper room into the house, and gave him to his mother. Elijah said, “Look, your son is alive.”24 Then the woman said to Elijah, “Now I know you are a man of God and the LORD’s word from your mouth is true.”

The woman of Shunem

She and her husband provided a room for the prophet Elisha when he was in their town. Elisha was told that she had been unable to conceive and he told her that she would be blessed by God and would have a child, and she bore a son. Some years later her son died. She went and got Elisha and brought him back to her house.


2 Kings 4:32-37 (HCSB)32 When Elisha got to the house, he discovered the boy lying dead on his bed.33 So he went in, closed the door behind the two of them, and prayed to the LORD.34 Then he went up and lay on the boy: he put mouth to mouth, eye to eye, hand to hand. While he bent down over him, the boy’s flesh became warm.35 Elisha got up, went into the house, and paced back and forth. Then he went up and bent down over him again. The boy sneezed seven times and opened his eyes. 36 Elisha called Gehazi and said, “Call the Shunammite woman.” He called her and she came. Then Elisha said, “Pick up your son.” 37 She came, fell at his feet, and bowed to the ground; she picked up her son and left.

Mother in Nain

This lady, a widow, lost her only son. Jesus was moved with compassion and, for her sake, resurrected her son.

Luke 7:13-15 (HCSB) 13 When the Lord saw her, He had compassion on her and said, “Don’t cry.” 14 Then He came up and touched the open coffin, and the pallbearers stopped. And He said, “Young man, I tell you, get up!” 15 The dead man sat up and began to speak, and Jesus gave him to his mother.

Elizabeth

Barren in her old age, Elizabeth was another of the miracle mothers in the Bible. She conceived and gave birth to a son. She and her husband named him John, as an angel had instructed. Like Hannah before her, she dedicated her son to God, and like Hannah's son, he also became a great prophet, John the Baptist. Elizabeth's joy was complete when her relative Mary visited her, pregnant with the future Savior of the World.

Luke 1:24-25 (HCSB) 24 After these days his wife Elizabeth conceived and kept herself in seclusion for five months. She said, 25 “The Lord has done this for me. He has looked with favor in these days to take away my disgrace among the people

Mary

Mary the mother of Jesus is the most honored mother in the bible and of all time. Mary was very young, some say as young as 12 or 13 years old. She was also a peasant which means that she was very poor.

Mary, although troubled, didn't hesitate or question the angel Gabriel when he told her that she had found favor with God and that she was going to have a son who she was to name Jesus, all this without having any intimate relationships with a man

Luke 1:38 (HCSB) “I am the Lord’s slave,” said Mary. “May it be done to me according to your word.” Then the angel left her. Well we know the rest of the story Mary did give birth to our Lord and Savior Jesus only to see Him crucified on a cross for her salvation and ours.


These are just a few examples of mothers of faith in bible. So the next time that you are tempted to think that men are more important in God’s plan for mankind …..think again.

HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY MOMS!!!!

God Will See You Through Just Trust Him

Hebrews 13:6 (HCSB) Therefore, we may boldly say: The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid.  What can man do to me?

This is a very powerful scripture.  It means that God, through the Lord Jesus Christ, promises to help us know matter what or no matter who is working against you.  It may be someone or something on our jobs, someone or something at school, someone or something in a relationship, finances, etc. We don’t have to worry or be afraid God has promised to help us.  God will see you through if you just trust Him.

Hebrews 13:5 (NKJV) Let your conduct be without covetousness; be content with such things as you have. For He Himself has said, "I will never leave you nor forsake you."

This scripture, according to Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary,   “… contains the sum and substance of all the promises; I will never, no, never leave thee, no, never forsake thee. In the original there are no less than five negatives put together, to confirm the promise: the true believer shall have the gracious presence of God with him, in life, at death, and forever. Men can do nothing against God, and God can make all that men do against his people, to turn to their good.”

 This All Sounds Great Doesn't It?

Why is it then that when we have a situation or circumstance where something or someone is working against us that we still fret and worry?   The answers to this question and ways to win against worry anxiety and stress may be in a study I did with my church’s adult bible study group.  Some of you may have followed that study, “Overwhelmed:  Winning the WarAgainst Worry”  on my Faith The Evidence blog.  If so this will post will be a reminder for you.  For those of you that don’t follow that blog this post will bless and encourage you.

 Do You Really Trust God for Everything? 

If we are really honest I bet you’ll admit there are times that you don’t really trust God.  What’s strange is we trust God for salvation and eternal life, we trust Him for things like, us waking up in the morning, and that the sun will rise and set every day, yet we don’t trust him in so many things in our lives. God wants us to trust Him in everything big and small.  To do that we have to surrender completely to Him and his timing. Until we can totally trust God for absolutely everything we will be trusting ourselves or somebody else and we will always have anxiety.

Here are is some scripture for you to read and meditate on at those times when you are overwhelmed with stress and anxiety.

·         Psalm 9:10 (HCSB) Those who know Your name trust in You because You have not abandoned those who seek You, Yahweh.

·         Psalm 37:5 (HCSB) Commit your way to the LORD; trust in Him, and He will act,

·         Psalm 56:3-4 (HCSB) When I am afraid, I will trust in You. 4  In God, whose word I praise, in God I trust; I will not fear. What can man do to me?

·         Psalm 56:10-11 (HCSB)10  In God, whose word I praise, in the LORD, whose word I praise, 11  in God I trust; I will not fear. What can man do to me?

·         Psalm 91:2 (HCSB)  I will say to the LORD, “My refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.”

·         Isaiah 12:2 (HCSB)  Indeed, God is my salvation; I will trust ⌊Him⌋ and not be afraid, for Yah, the LORD, is my strength and my song. He has become my salvation.”

These are just a few.  Psalms is full of scripture on trusting God.

 Why don’t we trust God for everything?

There are some things that Pastor Perry Noble, author of “Overwhelmed:  Winning the War Against Worry” calls trust blockers. 

 Trust Blocker #1 The Pace of Our Lives

The pace of our lives causes us to have blinders on.  We are so fixed on solving this problem, running here and there, trying to address this situation, that is that it is hard to pay

attention to God.    Here’s a quote from Pastor Noble’s book “The devil doesn't want to make you bad; he wants to make you busy.”

Jesus was a very busy person especially during the three years of His ministry.  He had crowds following Him all the time and there were several times when He actually tried to get away from the crowds to rest. A couple or examples of this are in:

·          Mark 6:30-31 (HCSB)30  The apostles gathered around Jesus and reported to Him all that they had done and taught. 31  He said to them, “Come away by yourselves to a remote place and rest for a while.” For many people were coming and going, and they did not even have time to eat.

·          Matthew 14:23 (HCSB)23  After dismissing the crowds, He went up on the mountain by Himself to pray. When evening came, He was there alone.

Jesus is the example for us that we need to take a break and rest and spend some time with God and He will show us those promises in His word that proves that He loves us and that He can be trusted because He’s done it before and can do it again.

 Trust Blocker #2 Disappointment

When God doesn't answer our prayers exactly the way we want Him to we’re disappointed.   I didn't get the job that I wanted, my relative didn't get healed or saved.  I didn't get I didn't get, I didn't get.  When we think back about those things then we have a tendency to not trust God.

Here’s the reason we take our preferences and turn them into His promises - even when those aren’t actually things He has promised to do.   Then when it doesn’t happen the way we thought it should happen because we misinterpreted the promise or took it out of context, be honest, we think that God didn’t keep His promise.  We get angry then we don’t trust God.

To keep ourselves from making the mistake of saying or feeling that God doesn't keep His promises is to really know what His promises are.  The only real way to do that is to get it from His word the Bible.  Not from the television or radio preachers, not from your pastor, but by studying yourself.  You have to study for yourself in order to really know what God says about you and His promises through Jesus.  When you do that you will find that “God is a promise maker and a promise keeper - always has been, always will be!”

Here’s the promise that we should always remember Romans 8:28 (NKJV)  And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.

It is God's love in Christ that sustains us and empowers us—even in the midst of our experiences of sin and death—"to be conformed to the likeness of his Son" (Romans 8:29). God works in all things toward that good purpose. But only "those who love him" know that, because they are participants "with him" in the outworking of that purpose.

 Trust Blocker #3 Spiritual Blindness

When the pace of our lives and our disappointment cause us to focus on our situations and circumstances we can’t see that God may just have something bigger in store for us.

To really know what God wants for us and to remember what He has done for we have to slow down and spend time with Him in His word the Bible.  The Bible is where we find the promises of God and taking time to read them and meditate on them and ask God what He is really saying.  Listen to Him not our own emotions or looking back on the times we thought that God disappointed us.  Then and only then can we learn to trust God and to lean not to our own understanding Proverbs 3:5 (HCSB)5  Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not rely on your own understanding;

We want control and when we decide that we are going to take control then comes the stress and anxiety.  When we trust God because He is in control and when we spend time with Him in prayer and the study of His word, the bible we will know that He loves us.  The greatest example of that love is the gift of Jesus Christ, who gave His life for us.

 The Lord is Your Helper

What do we have to fear if the Lord is our helper?  Nothing.  We have the complete assurance that the Lord is on our side.  No spirit or Man can do anymore to us than He permits and if He permits it then He can limit or end it.

1 Corinthians 10:13 (HCSB)  No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to humanity. God is faithful, and He will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation He will also provide a way of escape so that you are able to bear it.

·          Psalm 27:1 (HCSB)  The LORD is my light and my salvation— whom should I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life— of whom should I be afraid?

·         Psalm 27:9 (HCSB)  Do not hide Your face from me; do not turn Your servant away in anger. You have been my helper; do not leave me or abandon me, God of my salvation.

·         Psalm 54:4 (HCSB)  God is my helper; the Lord is the sustainer of my life.

·         Psalm 118:6 (HCSB)  The LORD is for me; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?

God is in control and He is our protector, helper and friend.  He has helped and delivered you before and He will do it again just trust Him!

What Does the Bible Say, Does Forgiving Mean Forgetting?

One of the questions that I get a lot is,  “Pastor, does forgiving mean forgetting?”  I have an answer but before I give it let’s see what the bible says about it?  Whenever someone asks me a question dealing with relationships I always defer to the bible because it’s the manual that God gave to guide us in how to live with one another.  

In Exodus 20:1-17,  the scripture that we call the 10 Commandments, numbers 5-10 are how we are to relate to one another 

Exodus 20:12-17 (HCSB) 12  Honor your father and your mother so that you may have a long life in the land that the LORD your God is giving you. 13  Do not murder. 14  Do not commit adultery. 15  Do not steal. 16  Do not give false testimony against your neighbor. 17  Do not covet your neighbor’s house. Do not covet your neighbor’s wife, his male or female slave, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.  

So this is my manual for knowing how I should relate and interact with everybody.

Now to the question.   Does to forgive mean to forget?  Let’s first define the two main words in the question, forgive and forget.

Forgive (verb)

·         to stop feeling anger toward (someone who has done something wrong) : to stop blaming (someone)

·         to stop feeling anger about (something) : to forgive someone for (something wrong)

·         to stop requiring payment of (money that is owed)

·         Synonym – pardon

Forget (verb)

·         to be unable to think of or remember (something)

·         to fail to remember to bring or take (something)

·         to stop thinking or caring about (someone)

·         Synonyms – disremember, unlearn

To forgive is to stop feeling anger toward someone or about something, to pardon them.  To forget is to not remember or think or care about something, to unlearn or disremember.

 What Does the Bible Tell Us about Forgiving

The phrase “to forgive and forget” is not in the Bible.  The Bible does however, in many places, command us to forgive each other.

Matthew 6:14 (HCSB) “For if you forgive people their wrongdoing, your heavenly Father will forgive you as well.

Ephesians 4:32 (HCSB) And be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving one another, just as God also forgave you in Christ.

Jesus’ comment to Peter when he asked how many times we should forgive implies constant forgiveness without holding it against the one we forgive.

Matthew 18:21-22 (HCSB) 21  Then Peter came to Him and said, “Lord, how many times could my brother sin against me and I forgive him? As many as seven times?” 22  “I tell you, not as many as seven,” Jesus said to him, “but 70 times seven.

The Bible also tells us that if we don’t forgive we won’t be forgiven.

Matthew 6:14-15 (HCSB) 14  “For if you forgive people their wrongdoing, your heavenly Father will forgive you as well. 15  But if you don’t forgive people, your Father will not forgive your wrongdoing.

Mark 11:25-26 (HCSB) 25  And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him, so that your Father in heaven will also forgive you your wrongdoing. [ 26  But if you don’t forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your wrongdoing.]”

A forgiving spirit is made easier for Christians when they consider how much God has already forgiven.

Why should we give anybody a clean slate who has wronged us?  Because God, who is our example for how to forgive, does.  He forgives and overlooks everything that we have done and do against Him, through Jesus, so that we can have eternal life and an eternal inheritance.

Micah 7:18 (HCSB)  Who is a God like You, removing iniquity and passing over rebellion for the remnant of His inheritance? He does not hold on to His anger forever, because He delights in faithful love.

Forgiveness is an act of the will and since God commands us to forgive we must make that choice.  We must forgive even if the person who offended us doesn't ask for or doesn't even want forgiveness.

Matthew 5:44-45 (HCSB) 44  But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45  so that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. For He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.

The Problem with Unforgiveness

Here is what I learned about unforgiveness from a recent study that I led for my church’s Sunday adult bible study group.

The person who won’t forgive is the real victim.  We want to be forgiven for stuff we have done because we rationalize that we really didn't mean it or what happened was the result of a bad decision, so of course we should be forgiven.  How arrogant of us to feel this way and then we not forgive.

“Withholding forgiveness does not hurt ‘them’ it hurts you.  Withholding forgiveness is like drinking poison and expecting it to kill the person who hurt you.  Withholding forgiveness puts a barrier between you and the blessings of God.  Withholding forgiveness overwhelms you with feelings that the human body was not designed to sustain”.

When someone hurts us it really does hurt and some things are almost too horrible to bear.  Things  like being raped or molested, someone stealing from you, a spouse or good friend betraying you, someone spreading lies about you.  These are horrible things and some of them will always affect us.  But we don’t have any choice but to forgive because Jesus commanded us to forgive and He gave us an example.

Jesus was betrayed by a friend, He was arrested on false charges, He was beaten, made fun of, and finally crucified.  But what did he say?

 Luke 23:34 (HCSB) Then Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, because they do not know what they are doing.”] ….  

They didn't deserve forgiveness and we didn't deserve forgiveness but God through Jesus did forgive and he continues to forgive us.

Here is a great quote from the book “Overwhelmed:  Winning the War Against Worry” by Noble Perry.  “Forgiveness is like putting a key in a prison door to release someone else, only to discover that the person you are releasing is yourself.

But What About Forgetting?

The Bible says that God doesn’t remember our sins against Him.

Hebrews 8:11-12 (HCSB) 11  And each person will not teach his fellow citizen, and each his brother, saying, “Know the Lord,” because they will all know Me, from the least to the greatest of them. 12  For I will be merciful to their wrongdoing, and I will never again remember their sins.  Micah 7:19 (HCSB) 19  He will again have compassion on us; He will vanquish our iniquities. You will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea.

God having forgiven us treats us as if the sin had never happened.   We that now belong to Him through faith in Jesus Christ are assured that He doesn’t hold our sins against us.  Following that example we should, as best we can, act as if it never happened.  Now I don’t believe that means that we must allow the same thing by the same person to happen again especially if it’s something serious.

We will remember the it because it’s impossible for us as human beings to truly forget what others have done to us.  If we’re healthy we can’t selectively remove some things from or memory.  But we can live as if we don’t remember it keeping in mind 

Ephesians 4:32 (HCSB) And be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving one another, just as God also forgave you in Christ.

Forgetting is not required in order to forgive.   Because we still remember doesn't mean that forgiveness isn’t complete and total.

 One Final Thought on Forgetting

Think about this.  

2 Corinthians 5:10 (HCSB) For we must all appear before the tribunal of Christ, so that each may be repaid for what he has done in the body, whether good or worthless.

God totally forgives, but apparently He doesn't completely erase the memory of our sins.  He will judge every act and every careless word and our rewards will be based on that judgement.  

Here’s My Answer to the Question Does Forgiving Mean Forgetting?

God wants us to forgive each other just like He has forgiven us through Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross.  Once we do what it says in 

Romans 10:9-10 (HCSB) 9  If you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. 10  One believes with the heart, resulting in righteousness, and one confesses with the mouth, resulting in salvation.;  

God  treats us as though we never sinned at all and doesn’t hold our sins against us. So, in a sense, He “forgives and forgets.”

In the same way when we forgive we should act as though it never happened. We do still remember the offense, and we should learn from it, but to truly forgive, we should treat the person as though it never happened.  I realize that it’s impossible for us to do that on our own however we have the Holy Spirit in us that empowers us, to do what is impossible to do in our flesh.  

The Bible is, of course, you primary source of information from God regrading His plan for you, but He has bless others with the ability to break it down for us so that we can apply biblical principles into every aspect of our lives. 

What do you think?  Can you truly forgive and treat the person who offended you like it never happened?  What about an abusive relationship can you forgive?  Please comment below. You never know how your comments and experiences will bless others.

7 Promises of God to Increase and Strengthen Your Faith

We all like to think that we have the faith that Jesus says can move mountains. That mustard seed faith!  When things are going good, there are no big problems in our lives, we have plenty of food to eat, a nice place to live, health, and good job, then our faith in God is strong.  We can counsel others and encourage them to just hang in there.  We can say to them “God’s got your back and He will never leave you or forsake you”.  We are strong

Faith to move mountains

pillars of faith then.  But, if we’re honest with ourselves, when times aren't so good, when we have big problems in our lives, when we don’t have plenty of food,  and we don’t know if we’ll have any food tomorrow, when we've lost our job,  and we may lose our home, is our faith as strong then?  Do we say to ourselves “just hang in there, God’s got your back, and  He will never leave you or forsake you”?  Well I’ll be honest.  I've been there and yes I said those things but I really didn’t feel them.  If you can relate then this is for you.  This is the formula to increasing and strengthening our faith during those down times which are sure to come.

 Remember the Past

Chances are that this down time isn't the first that you've experienced and it is probably not the last.  I remember the time that my wife and I were down to our last.  Our credit cards were maxed and delinquent, savings gone and our checking accounts overdrawn, we had borrowed money from relatives, the church had helped us, and we were close to being on the street.  We were in a new city, didn't know many people, and the company that moved us had run out of money and shut down. Out of the blue (we know that it was not really out of the blue, it was God), I got a telephone call from somebody that I hadn't talked to in at least five years, and I know he didn’t have my phone number, but he had somebody find me.   To this day I don’t know how they knew where I was or my phone number.   He needed some help on a big project and needed a consultant and adviser and he retained me that day.  I look back on this experience when problems come and I feel my faith slipping and I say to myself remember that time…….  This is just one example, and this isn't even the most dramatic one.  I’m saving that one for a future post.  With each experience my faith in God increases and I become stronger and my periods of doubt and fear become shorter and fewer.  So when the down times come remember the times that God stepped in and handled it.

 Look at other Believers

Someone reading this may be going through something similar or identical to the situation I just described.  My testimony is an example for you that God will make a way for you too.  Remember God is no respecter of persons.  He doesn't love me more that He loves you.  His solution for you may not be like the one He had for me but trust Him and don’t doubt.  I’m sure that you know others who can tell you of their experience of holding fast to their faith and trust in God and although things looked dire they made it through and God did not forsake them.  Churches don’t allow a time for people to give testimonies much anymore but it was at those were times we often heard from people who were going through or had gone through exactly what we are going through.  God’s intervention in their lives example for us of God’s faithfulness.  Remember God is not a respecter of persons.

 Seven Promises From the Bible – The Word of God

Standing on the promises of God is a major ingredient in the formula for increasing and strengthening our faith here are seven:

1.      Philippians 4:19 And my God will supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus.

2.      2 Corinthians 12:9 But He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.” Therefore, I will most gladly boast all the more about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may reside in me.

3.      Romans 8:28 We know that all things work together for the good of those who love God: those who are called according to His purpose.

4.      Isaiah 41:10 Do not fear, for I am with you; do not be afraid, for I am your God. I will strengthen you; I will help you; I will hold on to you with My righteous right hand.

5.      Matthew 6:25-32 “This is why I tell you: Don’t worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; or about your body, what you will wear.  Isn’t life more than food and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the sky: They don’t sow or reap or gather into barns, yet your heavenly Father feeds them.  Aren't you worth more than they? Can any of you add a single cubit to his height by worrying? And why do you worry about clothes? Learn how the wildflowers of the field grow: they don’t labor or spin thread. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was adorned like one of these!  If that’s how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and thrown into the furnace tomorrow, won’t He do much more for you—you of little faith? So don’t worry, saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear?’ For the idolaters eagerly seek all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them.

6.      1 John 5:14-15 Now this is the confidence we have before Him: Whenever we ask anything according to His will, He hears us.  And if we know that He hears whatever we ask, we know that we have what we have asked Him for.

7.      Philippians 4:6-7 Don’t worry about anything, but in everything, through prayer and petition with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses every thought, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.

These are only seven of the promises of God to us. There are hundreds.  The "Promises of God" page on my website FaithTheEvidence.com gives you 10 that will help you to stand no matter the situation or circumstance.  If you have a concordance,  your  bible has a concordance, or if you have a book of promises of the bible,  find the specific promise or promises that speak to your situation and include them in you time with God.  He doesn’t need to be reminded of them but we do.

1 Peter 1:6-7 You rejoice in this, though now for a short time you have had to struggle in various trials so that the genuineness of your faith—more valuable than gold, which perishes though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory, and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.  James 1:2-3 Consider it a great joy, my brothers, whenever you experience various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance.

Trials will come to all of us but they come to make us strong and to increase and strengthen our faith.