The word delight means “to gain great pleasure, satisfaction, and happiness.” Wouldn’t you like those to be the words that describe your relationship with God—one where both you and He enjoy time spent in each other’s presence? If that sounds good to you, then I have great news. God also wants that kind of delightful friendship, which develops through commitment, trust, and patience.
• First, a believer must commit his or her ways to God. This means that we invite the Lord to examine our desires and intentions—and change whatever does not fit His purpose or advance His plan for our life.
• Second, a believer must trust God. Who is more worthy of our faith than the Father, who gave Jesus Christ to save wicked sinners? The One who would not spare His only Son will certainly provide all that His children need (Rom. 8:32).
• Third, a believer must rest in God. When we fret about an issue or something that we consider necessary, we are neither committing ourselves to the Lord nor trusting in Him. Because our human viewpoint is extremely limited, waiting patiently rarely proves easy. God, however, has infinite wisdom and knows when circumstances and timing are perfectly aligned for His will to be done.
A growing relationship with the Lord is not drudgery, though it can be hard work. But the effort is a labor of love, because humans are designed to derive joy and fulfillment from being in God’s presence. The greatest pleasure we can experience in life is walking hand in hand with a Father who adores us.
Once we have made up our minds to obey God, we gather courage around us like a cloak and proceed. That is, until something causes us to hesitate and question the wisdom of this decision. Our faith is wavering. What do we do now?
Ask yourself questions about God. Has God promised to meet all my needs? Has He sent the Holy Spirit to dwell in me, guide me, and equip me to obey Him? Did God promise to be with me at all times? Is anything too hard for Him? Search the Scriptures for answers, and let truth fill your mind.
Meditate on God's Word. Ask the Lord to help you find Bible verses that relate to what you are facing. Then study the passage and apply its lessons to your personal situation.
Recall the Lord's past faithfulness. God by His very nature is faithful, and He always acts true to His character. The enemy would have us forget all that God has done for us.
Assess the situation. Ask, How critical is this decision, and whom might it affect? Is this one of those forks in the road in which my unbelief could cause me or another person a lifetime of regret?
Choose to trust the Lord. Make the decision to believe God and obey, no matter how you feel.
As you take a step of faith, God will strengthen you through His Spirit and enable you to continue on. Before you know it, your faith will become steady, joy will return, and you will be moving ahead once again.
Since faith is the core of our Christian experience, the consequences of wavering faith are far-reaching. Vacillating trust can lead us to make wrong decisions. Sometimes, after praying for direction, we might receive an answer that leads us to think, I can’t do that. So, instead of asking God to strengthen our faith, we make excuses. We may choose to postpone our obedience—even indefinitely—in order to do something else we consider just as worthwhile. But partial obedience is still disobedience, and it leads to situations that can be dire.
When our faith falters, not only can it result in poor choices, but it also is costly. The Israelites wandered 40 years in the desert because the nation allowed unbelief to overtake their faith. Wavering trust can make us miss out on the blessings of God; it often proves detrimental to those we love as well.
Our confidence will also be affected by shifting faith. When we are spiritually unsteady, we can easily be shaken by little things—even insignificant matters. Instead of standing firm, we may find our confidence eroding. Then we become less willing to take the risks God is asking of us. Rather than acting with certainty, we question and doubt what we are hearing from the Lord. We may also find joy diminishing because our wavering faith has led us away from God’s will. The inner peace of God that we once enjoyed evaporates as our faith weakens.
No matter how unsteady our faith, God invites us to draw near so He can strengthen our trust in Him. When He does, accept His invitation and give Him the glory.
Faith is the heart of our Christian life. It is the means by which we are saved, receive forgiveness for our sins, enjoy a personal relationship with the Lord, and have the assurance of our salvation. By faith, we experience the peace of God and the power of the Holy Spirit in our lives. The Bible also tells us that praying in confident trust “avails much” (James 5:16 NKJV). Yet our lives and especially our prayers tend to be characterized by doubts and wavering faith.
Our faith wavers when . . .
We apply human thinking to our circumstances. Sometimes God is going to require us to do something with which human reasoning disagrees (Isa. 55:9).
We allow our feelings to overcome our faith. It could be a sense of unworthiness or inadequacy that trips us up. Fear of criticism or failure might cause us to doubt we can do what the Lord asks.
We fail to see God at work in our circumstances. Doubts creep in when we have asked Him to take action but nothing appears to be happening.
We have guilt over sin, past or present. We cannot operate with strong faith when we are under conviction of sin or dwelling on guilt over past wrongdoing. WE
We listen to the enemy’s lies. Satan is the father of lies, and his objective is to have us reject God’s truth and believe his deception instead.
Faith is defined as “the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen” (Heb. 11:1). What is the condition of your faith? Do confidence and conviction describe you?
Television news is often filled with interviews and images of people who have suffered some unimaginable tragedy. One day we’re shown tornado survivors whose homes were torn apart by powerful winds. Another day we may see massive floods sweeping through an unsuspecting neighborhood. Occasionally, we even view homes that are swallowed whole by terrible earthquakes. The expressions on the faces of those who have suffered loss can be haunting.
Losses like these always draw our attention toward the fragility of those things we hold most dear—such as our homes, families, and careers. We seldom like wake-up calls that remind us of the inherent instability of earthly life.
But in a world that oftentimes seems to be falling apart, believers in the Lord Jesus Christ have the privilege of sharing the best news imaginable: We have something that is stable, something that is completely secure. There is a rock on which we are able to stand, and it cannot be shaken. That foundation, of course, is almighty God.
The Lord gives us other immovable truths as well. We can trust that Scripture is His unchanging, relevant truth for all time. We can forever depend on a secure eternal relationship with Him through His Son. And we can be sure that an everlasting heavenly home awaits all those who place their faith in Jesus Christ. We can have stability, even in this unstable world.
Do you have someone in your life who needs this life-saving good news— someone who is drowning, desperately needing you to throw a lifeline? Don’t wait; share it today.
