Are You Going to Walk By Faith or By Sight?
As we go through life, we must make decisions that can have a major effect on the will of God in our lives. Whether it be a job, relationships, where we live, or college, we cannot make those decisions based on the physical. What looks good carnally, or to our flesh, is how we base some of our decisions and that will deceive us every time. We must have spiritual maturity to make those decisions based on prayer and fasting and the advice of the godly council in our lives.
In Genesis chapter 13, we find Abraham and Lot leaving Egypt on a path back to Bethel. Abraham and Lot had both acquired a lot of cattle and wealth. The herdsmen were fighting amongst each other so Abraham made the decision that he was going to have to split from Lot. The first thing of importance to note is that when they arrived in Bethel, Abraham found an altar he had previously built there. He made a sacrifice and prayed and worshiped God. When we are facing major life decisions we need to find an altar and pray and seek God. We need to sacrifice those things in our life that cause us to look at things in the carnal. Abraham’s faith and connection to God was where it needed to be. In Genesis13, it does not say anything about Lot participating in anything at the altar. So what this tells us is that Lot was likely leaning more towards the carnal. Abraham gave Lot the choice of where he could live and told him, “Lot, you can either have the left or the right.”
Lot looked upon the plain of Jordan and saw how marvelous it was. There was an abundance of water, the grass was green and it looked beautiful. The bible compares it to the Garden of the Lord.
And Lot lifted up his eyes, and beheld all the plain of Jordan, that it was well watered every where, before the Lord destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah, even as the garden of the Lord, like the land of Egypt, as thou comest unto Zoar. Genesis 13:10
When we have major life decisions that pop up in our life we can get excited. We can start to see how a job gives us more money or prestige and we can start to operate by sight. Our heart can have the tendency to lose track of the spiritual and all we can see is the worldly benefits that it brings. When we get to that point, we can have a hard time seeing that Sodom is waiting on the other side. Before we know it, we are living in the middle of Sodom. Lot never thought that one decision would eventually cost him EVERYTHING. We have to remember the Bible tells us in 2 Corinthians 5:7 that we are to “walk by faith and not by sight.” Jeremiah 17:9 says that “the heart is deceitful above all things.” When we make choices that are based on our emotions, we are going to be led astray. Instead, we should walk by faith and make decisions based on what Jesus spoke in Matthew 6:33. “Seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things will be added unto you.” When we pray, fast, and seek godly council, we are aligning ourselves with God’s Word and will for our life.
Legends of Faith
Blood is Thicker Than Water: What Does it Really Mean?
God has been in covenant with his people from the beginning of time. God made a covenant with Noah never to destroy the earth with water again. God made a covenant with Abraham that He would give him a land for his descendents to come. And God has made a covenant with you and I. Ephesians 2:11-13:
Wherefore remember, that ye being in time past Gentiles in the flesh, who are called Uncircumcision by that which is called the Circumcision in the flesh made by hands; that at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world: but now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ.
I’m thankful that God robed Himself in flesh and shed His blood so I can be in covenant with Him. I now have a promise and hope in this world.
I heard a story of a man who was battling cancer and was undergoing chemotherapy treatments via IV. One day the IV port became dislodged and chemo got on his skin. It immediately damaged his flesh and he had to seek treatment at the hospital. While the doctor was cleaning up the wounds the man asked, “How can a medication that is suppose to be saving my life do so much damage to my flesh upon contact?”
No matter what you are facing in life remember that “blood is thicker than water!”
4 Characteristics of an Overcomer
Characteristic #1: You must be a worshiper.
Job had learned of an unspeakable tragedy, something that would cripple any parent. Even after finding out this horrendous news, Job blessed the name of the Lord. He gave God the glory. Job had a made up mind that He would not allow his circumstances to dictate his worship. This is the first characteristic of an overcomer.
Characteristic #2: You must have a relationship with God and a revelation of who He is.
Characteristic #3: You must respect and love God’s word.
Job said God’s word was more important for his survival than food was for his body. Job couldn’t pick up the books of Law and study them. He couldn’t read from the words of the prophets and apply them to his life. He didn’t have the opportunity to read from the gospels or memorize verses from the epistles, yet he still had an understanding of the importance of the Word of God in his life. I wonder what Job would have done for the opportunity to pick up one of our bibles and be able to read from it when he was in the middle of this trial? How many times have we taken our Bible for granted? Job would have loved to read from it and study it and write it on the tablets of his heart. He would have done anything for that opportunity. If we are going to overcome, we must fall in love with the Word of God.
Characteristic #4: You must prioritize your life and live accordingly.
- Be a worshiper
- Have a relationship with God and a revelation of who He is
- Respect and love God’s word
- Live a prioritized life
How Could Uncomfortable Ever Be Good?
Discomfort can actually become a good thing. We can react to uncomfortableness in one of two ways: 1 – we can stop doing what brought on the discomfort; or 2 – change, grow, adjust, learn, expand, and discover while experiencing discomfort.
One of the greatest misconceptions we can have is that we should be comfortable all the time. A significant amount of “life’s experience” is simply uncomfortable. Pain, sorrow, loss, grief, illness, fear, loneliness, anxiety, stress, worry, relationship dysfunction, etc. Looks like being uncomfortable is just a part of the process and we each will experience our share of it.
Our personal comfort zone is that area of thoughts and actions within which we feel comfortable. It’s all the things we have done or thought often enough to feel comfortable doing or thinking. Anything we have not done often enough to feel comfortable doing lies outside the parameters of our comfort zone and makes us uncomfortable. Well…News Flash….if we continue to limit ourselves to our personal comfort zones, we will only continue to experience the same things we have already experienced, remaining within our familiar “safe” environments, and staying with the well-known/well-worn habits that keep us….yes, comfortable.
Of course, staying in our personal comfort zone is an option. For those of us who are more adventurous, comfort zone parameters seem to us as fences that may keep us from new experiences and discoveries. Case in point: a few months ago a friend told us about an opportunity to swim horses in the ocean. Yes, you read that correctly…swim horses.
This would be totally out of my personal comfort zone because first, I fear horses. Secondly, I was saved from drowning as a teenager, so I fear water that is over my head.
We mounted and rode the horses down a most beautiful beach. Took the saddles off. Grabbed the mane with both hands and headed into the ocean. Once the horses couldn’t reach the bottom, they did what they said they would do…swim. Swimming a horse in ten feet deep water, 300 yards from the beach is out of my personal comfort zone. But then it happened. I realized that stepping through a pack of dogs (fear/discomfort), getting on a horse (fear/discomfort), and swimming a horse in deep water (fear/discomfort) was actually allowing me to do something I’d never done before.
I actually look back on that afternoon of adventure with a sense of accomplishment, excitement, exhilaration, and enjoyment; all because I risked going beyond my self-imposed boundaries of my personal comfort zone.
In my next post, you’ll find the spiritual application of “How Could Uncomfortable Ever Be Good?”