December 1, 2014
The Vacillating Battle of Faith
Have you ever felt as if your Christian life swings back and forth like a pendulum between faith and doubt? This is a fairly common problem, especially when trying situations come our way. Although we know what God's Word says, our feelings tell us something totally different.
The question is not if we will experience this, but rather, how long we will remain on one side or the other. Three factors determine whether we lean toward faith or doubt: the strength of our faith at the time of the trial; our knowledge and understanding of God; and our experience with failure or success in past trials, especially those of the same nature.
To help you grow in faith, it's important to change not only your focus but also your thinking and listening practices.
- Set your mind on God's promises, not on the impossibility of your situation.
- Trust in His divine nature instead of your feelings about the circumstances.
- Seek to view the difficulty from His perspective instead of giving it your own limited interpretation.
- Listen to the Holy Spirit - not Satan's whispered lies, which stir up uncertainties.
- Rehearse the Lord's past faithfulness to you instead of dwelling on your previous failures.
The key to stabilizing faith lies in choosing to believe God, regardless of the situation. Only then will it be possible to bring natural feelings of doubt, anxiety, fear, anger, or confusion into submission to what we know to be true—that the Lord is faithful and will see us through every situation.
Used with permission from In Touch Ministries, Inc.
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Upcoming Sermon Series:
Fear attacks us right where our faith lives and keeps us from stepping into the plans God has for us. Created for the Christmas season, Fear Not helps us overcome fear and transform it into faith and obedience. With messages on the angels' visits to Mary, Joseph, and the shepherds, Fear Not assures us that God will always give us the guidance we need to reject fear. We will start this series December 7.
Last Week:Rev. Ron Salomon brought the word to us on Sunday. He spoke on Saved By Grace Through Faith
Sunday's message is available for streaming or for download on our website, just under the calendar, or by visiting us on iTunes.
Next Week: Lord willing, we will be starting our series Fear Not next Sunday by looking into the Fear of What God Is Asking Me To Do.
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December 2 - Men's Bible Study at the church beginning at 7 PM. We will be covering James 4.
December 6 - Ladies' Ornament Exchange at Brianne Seig's home, beginning at 11 AM. Please let Brianne know if you will be attending.
December 7 - No Carry-In Fellowship Dinner
December 21 - Sunday School Christmas Program at 11 AM
December 24 - Christmas Eve Service at 5 PM
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