Once there was a severe drought in the land. All of the crops withered and the river dried up. The farmers and villagers dreadfully needed rain. So they set up an appointment where all of the people will gather together and pray to God that He will finally send the rain they desperately needed. Since it is too hot during the day, they decided to pray in the open square during the night.
On the day of the prayer, all people came, but only one child brought an umbrella. While the majority of the villagers prayed to God, they lack the faith that God will hear their prayer. Only the child brought an umbrella in TOTAL FAITH that God would listen to their prayer on that day.
What is faith?
The Bible talks so much about faith. Hebrews 11:1 tells us, “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things NOT seen.” Faith is so important in our Christian walk that “without faith it is IMPOSSIBLE to please [God], for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him” (verse 6).
Based on these verses, the little child in our story has the faith to believe in God and that He is the rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. Of course, our story is a simplified illustration of what faith really is.
When we pray to God, it is not enough to ask Him of things we need, but we need to couple it with the faith that He is also able to do what we are asking of Him! How often have we asked God for something and, at the same time, doubting at the back of our mind if God will ever answer our prayers?
How to strengthen your faith?
Jesus/Yeshua predicted that there will be a great scarcity of faith when He returns here on earth (Luke 18:8). As Christians, we MUST desire to increase our faith.
So how do you strengthen your faith? Here are five points to remember:
- Listen to the word of God (Romans 10:17). We are urged to believe in God, but we also need to KNOW what to believe in. Thus, it is crucial that we read God’s word and study it on a regular basis.
- Pray to God to increase your faith (Mark 9:24). Jesus is the author of our faith (Hebrews 12:2). We can NEVER grow without the help of God. WE CAN’T JUST DO IT ON OUR OWN. Therefore, we need to come to the Source of our faith and diligently seek God’s will for our lives.
- Couple your faith with good works (James 2:18). It is not enough to just believe in God. Our faith in God must be EVIDENT and readily seen from our conduct, words, and actions. Our faith must motivate us to do what’s pleasing to God.
These are some of the best ways to increase your faith. Faith does not come naturally, and it is something that we need to consciously strive for. When we finally developed faith in God, expect that God will regularly test it so “that the genuineness of [our] faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, MAY BE FOUND TO PRAISE, HONOR, AND GLORY at the revelation of Jesus Christ.
