Our Identity in Christ is in Our Faith in Him

At times in our lives we have to slow ourselves down and know what God is saying to us. This is difficult at times because our lives can be rather hectic, and there are many things that may occur where we are trying to discern if it is coming from God or if it is from Satan. We need to be as prayerful as we can possibly be to discern if God’s voice is prominent on our lives, for if we listen to the flesh in the midst of our adversity, that is what win out every time. To trust in the Lord in all things is an act of faith. People who live by faith are obedient to the Lord. “Now faith is being sure of what is hoped, the proof of what is not seen” (Hebrews 11:1). It is with our faith that God imparts His righteousness to us, just as He did with Abraham (Genesis 15:6) and to Noah (Hebrews 11:7-8). The reality that we must always remember is that faith is a necessity in our walk with the Lord and in ministry. “For without faith it is impossible to please God, for the one who draws near to Him must believe that He exists and rewards those who seek him” (Hebrews 11:6). We are to live by faith and not by sight–what things appear to be (2 Corinthians 5:7). When things do not appear to be conclusive or are downright puzzling or unclear, God is one who provides clarity. We are to keep following God in all matters until He gives us a new direction (Philippians 3:12-15). God has already provided us the authority to overcome Satan with our limited talents and abilities (Zechariah 4:6). We are not to lose sight, however, of how we accomplish these things. We are to remain humble and not prideful of our accomplishments (Luke 10:17-20). God’s grace is to always be our sufficiency and not to receive praise and accolades from others (2 Corinthians 12:9-10). Each of us is selected by God to perform certain tasks with the gifts that are appointed to us (Hebrews 5:1). None of these tasks will manifest themselves unless there is a willingness to allow God to work in our lives. There must be a desire from within to hear God’s calling and to be willing to serve Him. This willingness and desire to serve the Lord is an act of faith. Faith in the Lord through our difficulties is what reassures us when we are uncertain of what is before us. “For our momentary light affliction is producing for us an absolutely incomparable eternal weight of glory. So we do not focus on what is seen, but on what is unseen; for what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal” (2 Corinthians 4:17-18).