Faith Changes Things

Fall may very well be my favorite season of the year. I love the feel of the brisk morning air in the mornings. I love the brilliant colors displayed on the Aspens and Cottonwoods adapt to the season. I love sound of a bull elk bugle reverberating through a mountain canyon. All of these changes in nature come with the Fall season of the year.

There are changes that come in our spiritual lives too as we move from season to season. Are you experiencing some changes in your walk with the Lord these days? Change. Just as nature’s changes bring resplendent beauty this time of year, so change brings out the beauty of what God is doing in our lives. But change does not come to our lives without us responding in faith to the Lord.

Hebrews 11:2 says, “For by it (i.e., faith) the men of old gained approval.” And verse 6 continues, “And without faith it is impossible to please Him….” Perhaps you are being challenged by God in some way(s) to respond to Him. I want to challenge you to act in faith in those areas because God wants to bring out some brilliance and beauty in you. In fact, if you’ll look back on your life, you will probably recognize that’s the way it’s been throughout your walk with God. As you’ve acted in faith change has come to your life, and that change has produced the beauty, splendor, and magnificence of God. It has provided opportunities for you to see God’s hand at work, and also point others to Christ.

I think of Abraham who responded by faith to God. He left his homeland for a place he did not know (Hebrews 11:8). Change came to Abraham’s life and family because they left the familiar to follow God. That act of faith produced the beauty of a covenant with God of which we are a part today.

I think of Moses who responded by faith to God. Change came as he left what he knew (shepherding) to embrace what God had prepared for him as Israel’s deliverer. That act of faith produced the beauty of Israel’s freedom and their journey to the promised land God had prepared for them.

I think of David who responded by faith to God. Change came as he told King Saul that he would not wear any armor as he went out to fight the Philistine giant Goliath. That act of faith produced the beauty of deliverance from Philistine oppression and victory for Israel preparing the way for David to become the greatest and most revered king Israel has ever known. The beauty of David’s life is that he was described by God as a man after His own heart (1 Samuel 13:14).

I am sure you can take inventory of your own life and discover times when you acted in faith toward God and it brought out the beauty of God’s goodness. Perhaps others were able to see what God had done and it provided opportunity for you to testify. Acting by faith pleases God. It produces beauty across the landscape of your life that others can see and contemplate.

What is God asking you to do by faith in your life today? Whatever He is speaking to you about is meant to produce change in you that is necessary for you. There is beauty yet to be revealed in you, but you must act by faith in God.

What steps of faith do you need to take in your marriage? How about with your children? How about with your education? Or, what about in your finances? How about your involvement in serving others? Whatever God is speaking to you, act in faith and watch God reveal all His beauty in your life. It could be that this is indeed a season of change in your life.