Great Faith
The short excerpt is by Andy Stanley, and the Scripture is Mark 14:38 Abba, Father, Jesus said, everything is possible for you. Take this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.
Jesus was a man of extraordinary faith, yet His faith was not something He leveraged to get the world to work His way or to get God to do His bidding. This man of extraordinary faith was also a man that was extremely surrendered to the Father. Great faith is great surrender.
Faith is confidence that God is who He says that He is and that He will do everything that He promised to do. If you really believe this, then the logical response is not what can God do for me, but how can I serve God? Great faith is not leveraging it for your own benefit, but it is absolute and total surrender. Jesus does not leverage His faith or power for His benefit, but it is always for the sake of His Father in heaven.
If you are considering becoming a follower of Jesus a big part of following Him is surrender. Biblical faith is that we can ask God anything that we want to ask Him for; and sometimes He says Yes, and sometimes He says No. What He has promised is that every time you come to Him you can experience His presence, grace and mercy in your time of need. Where you have the most pain and trauma in your life is the arena where God wants to do His greatest work.
Faith is not about getting out of pain and escaping the circumstances of life although that sells big in America. It is simply saying, God, you are great, and I trust you. My great faith is going to be manifested in this world as extraordinary and great surrender in your direction.
Champions, have a great week!-David Vining
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