Increase Your Faith

“I’m not sure I have enough faith to make it through this.”

“Increase our faith!” (Luke 17:5).

“I believe; help my unbelief!” (Mark 9:24).

When you go through a personal crisis your faith is tested. Your friends might say, “just have more faith.” Taken as a cliché, it’s not only not helpful, it’s annoying.

Seek Genuine Faith

Just have more faith: this kind of faith is all about your effort – as in you’re not trying hard enough. If you hear “have more faith” and groan or feel even more discouraged, you’re focusing on a powerless faith – a faith devoid of God. You might feel cynical: What good is faith in God if it feels like He has abandoned me?

Have faith in God: this kind of faith is all about God. It’s genuine because God is the object of the faith. Genuine faith believes and trusts. It’s not about how hard you’re trying.

Your primary work is to believe in God. This means something different than “just have more faith,” which is useless because it lacks belief. With genuine faith you believe and are able to walk forward in the power of what you believe (see James 2:14-26 for more on this).

Jesus told them, “This is the only work God wants from you: Believe in the one he has sent.”

John 6:29 NLT

Belief Comes From God

God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God.

Ephesians 2:8 NLT

For no one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws them to me, and at the last day I will raise them up.
“I tell you the truth, anyone who believes has eternal life.”

John 6:44, 47 NLT

The power is in the believing. What should you believe? Your primary work is to believe God is who He says He is. God is good. God is your source of eternal life.

How to Increase Your Faith

I want more faith, don’t you?

You can’t run a marathon or even to your street corner without food. Likewise, you can’t finish a spiritual race without a vibrant faith.

How can you strengthen and grow your faith?

So faith comes from hearing, that is, hearing the Good News about Christ.

Romans 10:17 NLT

To strengthen your faith, you feed on God’s words. You meditate on God’s truth. You consume God’s words and allow them to become a part of you. How positive and hopeful you are depends on how much you reinforce your belief in the Good News about Christ.

If you’re a believer, then you have the faith already, but for it to do you much good, you have to exercise it regularly. Get your running clothes out of the closet and put them on.

Take the time throughout your day to be aware of your belief: I believe. I have faith. My faith is real. God is real. God is my help. I trust God. Then move forward confidently with all you have going on in your life. God is with you.

For more on increasing your faith, consider:
www.desiringgod.org
www.crosswalk.com
Image by marco aurelio from Pixabay

Matt Pavlik

Christian Counselor - New Reflections Counseling

Matt Pavlik is a licensed professional clinical counselor who wants to see each individual restored to their true identity. He has more than 20 years of experience counseling individuals and couples at his Christian counseling practice, New Reflections Counseling. Matt and Georgette have been married since 1999 and live with their four children in Centerville, Ohio.

Matt’s courses and books:
   
contain practical exercises that help God’s truth spring to life.