Daily Devotional for Thursday August 24, 2006
Faith is What we Believe, not How We Feel
(Hebrews 11:1)
One of the requests I get daily is from people who just don't "feel" God. Or, they were once "on fire" for the Lord and just don't "feel" Him like they once did. Don't make the mistake of judging your relationship with the Lord, or your service to God based on how you feel. Our relationship with Christ isn't an emotional experience. We accept Christ by FAITH. It is a relationship built on "faith" and not "feelings."
Feelings will betray you since they can change from day to day, even minute to minute. Our faith, however, is not based on how we feel, but what we believe. Just like your feeling may change in regard to your spouse, parents, children, friends..it doesn't stop them from being who they are in your life. You accepted Christ by faith. Our relationship with Him is one of faith. Just because your feelings may change, your relationship with Him does not.
As you mature in Christ, as those who have walked years with the Lord can attest, you rely less on how you might feel and more on your faith. The wonderful thing is that God is the same "yesterday, and today, and forever." God is immutable, a $5 theological term that means "unchanging." So regardless of how you might feel, God is always the same. His promises are the same, He is the same, there are no surprises from God. He doesn't change the rules on you at a whim. His love, His concern for you never diminishes or fades away.
The longer you walk with Christ, the better you get to know Him, the more you realize that you don't have to rely on how you feel. You can count on your faith, what you believe to guide you through this journey because God never changes.
For many people, this is a big hurdle to cross over. The hurdle of feelings versus faith. I will be praying for you today to really understand that you don't have to count on the way you feel to determine your walk with Christ. It is not measured by goose bumps.
That is why I stress so much the daily time with Him. The 30 minutes or so at the start of the day in the Word and prayer. Just like you can never develop much of a relationship with your friends without actually spending time with them, so it is with your relationship with Christ. How can you have a relationship with Him, when you never spend time alone with Him?
I love you and care about you so much. Today is the day we go to church, our focus tends to be on God and the things of God. I pray that you overcome the hurdle of feelings versus faith, and really commit to having a serious relationship with Christ. That doesn't happen overnight, just like an earthly relationship doesn't happen overnight. It is a day-to-day commitment. Make that commitment today. Luckily for us, He never changes, so He is waiting for you.