Growing Our Faith

Remember the world before Google maps and GPS directions? Ok, some of you “young ‘uns” may not remember this time from our past. Back then, if we didn’t know where we were going, we used huge paper maps that no one knew how to fold back. On a long road trip, the map would be splayed out all over the passenger’s lap, with the navigator carefully noting each town and the distance to the next turn.

These days, we type the address into our phones or our car’s GPS, then we trust that the computer will direct us safely to our destination with no wrong turns. We don’t even have to think about it. For those of us who are directionally challenged, this technology is amazing!!

Sometimes, we handle our faith like GPS directions. We decide that Heaven sounds like a cool place to go, so we set that destination and forget about it.  We go to church to stay on the route, or we may stop and take detours. However we may drive, we keep trusting that, through not much effort of our own, we will arrive at our destination at the appointed time.  

But God doesn’t want our faith to be on autopilot. He wants us to turn to him for direction and guidance. When we get lost, as we occasionally will, God wants us to seek him to get back on the right path. Our faith has to be intentional for us receive the richness and fullness of life that God intends for us. When we let our faith become passive, we miss out on so much purpose and joy that comes from having a deep, active faith in God.

Have you ever had a passion for something? Remember how it feels? You study it, you think about it, and you want to spend time practicing or learning it. When we were young, we may have been passionate about our favorite band or athlete. We hung posters on our walls (Michael Jordan, anyone?) or learned all of the lyrics to our favorite songs. That’s how God desires for us to feel about our faith–passionate.  He wants us to love him with all our heart, soul and mind. That is his greatest command. And yet, how many of us actually follow this request?

Would your faith grow if you loved God in the way that he directs us to love him? Absolutely, it would. Wherever you are, whatever your past is, you can start today to grow your faith. Here are just a few ways we can learn to love God more:

• Spend time reading the Bible. This can be intimidating, especially if you haven’t read it much before. It’s ok to start with the New Testament. It’s ok to start in Psalms. Just start. Anywhere. (Hint: Make sure you’re subscribed to my email list to get some great suggestions on this soon!)

• Pray. Pray to God like you’re talking to a friend that you delight in and respect. He cares about our worries. He wants to help lighten our burdens and wants us to lean into the the peace and joy that only he can bring. I found a helpful guideline on the internet for prayer; it is the acronym, ACTS:
  • Adoration – praise God for his goodness
  • Confession – admit when you have done something wrong and ask for forgiveness
  • Thanksgiving – thank God for your many blessings
  • Supplication – make your requests known for yourself and for others

• Allow more Godly influences into your life, and fewer bad influences. This goes for anything that you are allowing to affect you – the music you listen to, the friends you spend your time with, the TV shows you watch, the people you follow on social media, the books you read, etc. Choose the right influences.

• Plug in to a good church.  Notice that I didn’t say, “go to church.” Plug in, meaning make friends there, attend regularly, get involved, and go to the bible study/sunday school/classes they offer. Make sure the church is based on the Bible, aligns with your beliefs and challenges you to grow in your faith in a positive and healthy way.  Not every church is a good fit for every person, so keep searching until you find the right one for you.

As our faith grows, we become stronger and more joy-filled. When we trust in the Father’s plan for our life, we are free to worry less. The fruits of the spirit become more evident when we interact with others. As we deepen our faith, our hearts align more with God’s will and our light shines brighter.  

Dear Lord, as we walk through this life, we pray that we will draw closer to you each day. Let us become more and more dependent on you to guide our steps. Open our hearts to your truth. Please help us choose to love you with all our heart, soul and mind. Amen.