How to Live by Faith in an Uncertain World

You can't change the past. Whatever has happened in your life so far - both good and bad - cannot be altered, and all the decisions and events that have made you what you are today are indelibly inscribed in the story of your life.

But with God's help you can change the future. The future doesn't need to be a copy of the past, nor does God want it to be. No matter what your life has been like so far, God wants to put your feet on a new path...a better path...His path. And regardless of what you may have thought, His path promises joy and peace and purpose far beyond anything you could have imagined.

You aren't here by chance or by accident; you are here because God put you here. This journey is yours to travel - but God gave it to you. Never forget: God put you on the journey.

God not only put us on this journey but He wants to join us on it, if we will only let Him. We don't need to be alone, for He is with us! If we understand this truth, it gives us hope - hope that our lives can be different, because God cares about us and wants to help us. No matter what happens, God will never abandon us if our trust is in Him.

You can't change the past, but with God's help you can change the future. He knows all about you: your strengths and weaknesses, your failures and heartaches. But He doesn't want you to be shackled by the past. Instead, He wants to free you from your old ways and put your feet on a new path - His path.

The infinite, all-powerful, holy God of the universe wants to be your friend! He wants you to know Him personally and to discover what it means to walk with Him every day. He wants you to know He is with you, and He wants to have communication with you through His Word and through prayer. He wants to comfort you when you are upset or anxious and to encourage you when you are dejected or depressed. He wants to guide you when you face difficult decisions, and He even wants to correct you when you are about to do something foolish or wrong.

Only God can change us; we cannot change ourselves. The word "repent" means to turn from your sins. It means to change - to change your mind, your way of living, your attitude - with God's help. To repent means more than just being sorry for your sins or having regrets over the past. It means to honestly face your need for forgiveness, and deliberately turn from your sins.

The important thing is not how we come to Christ, but that we do come, and that we are sure we are now trusting Christ for our salvation. Are you certain of your commitment to Him? If not, don't let another moment go by without making that decision. Nowhere in the Bible are we promised a second chance after death, nor are we promised even one more day of life.

Whatever your experience, you may feel as I did after giving my life to Christ: "Lord, I don't know what happened to me." You may not even be sure anything has happened. Or perhaps you felt very close to God when you first believed in Christ, but now those feelings have faded, and you wonder if your faith was real. I often get letters from people who say their faith is like a roller coaster - up and down, constantly changing. One reason for these reactions is that once we give our lives to Christ, Satan will do everything he can to tempt us or make us doubt God.

But listen: Certain things do happen when we give our lives to Christ, and if we understand what they are, it will give us a solid foundation against every doubt Satan hurls against us. God's promise is true: "If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!" (2 Corinthians 5:17). If you have given your life to Christ, you are a new creation - whether you feel like it or not.

The first thing that happens when we give our lives to Christ is that God gives us a new relationship. Once we were separated from God because of our sins - and not just separated, but alienated from Him.

But what did Christ do for us? He took away all our sins - not just part of them, but all of them! You are forgiven! The one thing that separated you from God - your sin - has now been removed and therefore you are reconciled to Him. Think of it: If you know Christ, you are at peace with God. You are now His friend, and He is now yours.

We aren't only His friends, however. We are also His children. We now become God's sons and daughters, born into a new family - His family. If we have given our lives to Christ, God has adopted us into His family. We don't deserve it; it is solely because of His mercy and grace. From all eternity, the Bible says, God planned for us "to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ" (Ephesians 1:5).

The second thing God gives you when you commit your life to Christ is a new citizenship. You are still a citizen of a particular country - but now you are also a citizen of the kingdom of God.

Not only does God give us a new relationship with Himself and make us citizens of His kingdom, but He also gives us a new family--the family of God. You aren't just related to God; you are now related to other believers. Everyone who truly believes in Jesus Christ is now your spiritual brother or sister. We are bound together in God's family, not by an organization but by a spiritual relationship. This is one reason why you are never alone if you know Christ. You are part of God's family, with brothers and sisters in Christ who love you and want to help you, if you will let them.

If you know Christ, you don't need to beg for the Holy Spirit to come into your life; He is already there - whether you "feel" His presence or not. Don't confuse the Holy Spirit with an emotional feeling or a particular type of spiritual experience. Instead, accept by faith what God promised: When you come to Christ, the Holy Spirit comes to live within you. We aren't meant to live the Christian life in our own strength. God has provided His Spirit to help us.

I often receive letters from men and women who have sincerely committed their lives to Christ but aren't sure if God has really forgiven them. If someone asked them if they knew for certain they would go to heaven when they died, they would have to say no.

You can be sure of one thing: If Satan can't keep you away from Christ, he will at least try to make you doubt your salvation. The devil's overriding goal is to block God's work - and if he can convince you God doesn't really love you, or that you can't fully trust Him, then he has blocked God's work in your life and achieved his goal. Few things cripple a Christian quicker than a lack of assurance about his or her salvation. Our emotions go up and down, and if our faith is based only on our feelings, it won't be stable.

If we aren't sure whether or not God loves us, our journey through life will be hesitant, uncertain, insecure. But if we have confidence in God's love, then our journey will be joyful, assured, and filled with hope. A true Christian isn't prideful or arrogant; his confidence is not in himself but in God, and he humbly trusts Him every day.

Are you unsure of your salvation? Make certain of your commitment to Christ. Then learn God's promises...memorize them...thank Him for them...and most of all, trust them. Remember: God cannot lie, and you can trust His promises.

Our emotions aren't a dependable gauge of our true standing with God. Emotions come and go, and a faith that is built solely on our feelings will never be secure.

When Christ lives within us by His Spirit, our lives will be different. No, we won't be perfect, nor will we change instantly overnight. But if nothing has changed - in our attitude, our behavior, our priorities - it may indicate we haven't really given our lives to Christ after all.

Don't let anything - or anyone - ever rob you of your confidence in Christ. Remember: Your salvation depends on what He has done for you, not on what you do for Him. It isn't your hold on God that saves you; it's His hold on you. Your salvation is a free gift, made possible only because God planned it...Christ paid for it...and the Holy Spirit assures you of it.

Never forget: God's will is for us to become more like Christ - and this only happens as we submit every area of our lives to His authority. This is why our first spiritual battle once we come to Christ is usually with our will (and it will probably continue as long as we live, for our wills can be very stubborn).

God never removes something from our lives without replacing it with something far better. If God takes away a bad habit that has enslaved you, He will replace it with a better way of living. If He takes away your gossip or cursing or back biting, He will replace them with words of love and encouragement and praise. If He removes your self-centered motives, He will replace them with the excitement and joy of doing His will. God's goal isn't just to remove the bad things in our lives; He wants to replace them with good things.

The Christian life isn't a playground, but a battlefield. None of us is exempt from problems and troubles. However, when we know Christ, we truly have peace - peace with God, peace in our hearts, and peace with others.

This peace is real - just as real as God Himself. It is an inner peace - a peace in our souls and minds and emotions - that keeps us calm even in the midst of life's worst storms. But notice: This doesn't mean we'll always be free from trials and conflicts. Yes, Christ gives us inner peace - but He hasn't promised to always give us outer peace or freedom from problems and difficulties. In fact, our problems may become greater when we know Christ, because our commitment to Him may put us at odds with an unbelieving world.

Develop the discipline of spending time alone with God every day. Whether you call it your quiet time or daily devotions or some other term, there is no substitute for a daily time alone with God. Bible reading, prayer, and reflection (or meditation). When we read the Bible, God speaks to us - and we need to hear His voice. When God speaks to us, He should have our full attention.
When we pray, we speak to God - and we need to share our deepest joys and burdens with Him. When we reflect, we meditate on God's Word, and we ask God to help us apply it to our lives. Some people keep a journal to record what God is teaching them. Many also keep a prayer list, so they remember who needs their prayers (and also can record God's answers).

The first tool God has given us to strengthen our faith is the Bible. The Bible is essential to our spiritual growth - so essential that lasting spriritual maturity is impossible without it. Only a strong faith - a faith based on God's Word - will protect us from temptation and doubt. The Bible isn't just a collection of men's ideas about God, nor is it a guidebook for living that people developed over the centuries. It is the Word of God - and that makes all the difference. This means the Bible is our authority in everything it touches. This means the Bible is our guide to show us how to live. Most of all, this means the Bible is our instructor, teaching us about God and His plan of salvation in Christ. The central theme of the Bible is salvation, and the central personality of the Bible is Christ. The Bible is God's gift to us. It came from God, and it points us to God.

Don't let anyone shake your confidence in the Bible as God's Word. If you have questions about it, don't use them as an excuse to turn your back on God. Instead, face your doubts and seek answers; you aren't the first person to ask them. (Your local Christian bookstore can help you.)
In addition, read the Bible for yourself with an open heart and mind. Ask God to show you if it is truly His Word - and He will. Your life will never be the same once you trust the Bible as God's Word. God will begin to use it to change your life.

Our relationship with God involves communication, and that, quite simply, is what prayer is: talking with God. In the Bible God speaks to us; in prayer we speak to God. Both are essential - and both are gifts God has given us so we can know Him.

Even when we know Christ, however, we still sin, and we still need to come to Him for cleansing and restoration. When you know you have sinned, don't let anything - shame, guilt, pride, fear, or anthing else - keep you from confessing it to God, and seeking His forgiveness.

There may be many reasons why we don't pray: lack of discipline, unconfessed sin, failure to see our need of God's help, unconcern for others, doubt that God will answer our prayers, even a lack of assurance that we can come directly to God. Whatever the reason, ask God to give you a greater hunger for Himself and a deeper desire for His fellowship. Then be honest about whatever is keeping you from prayer, and ask God to help you deal with it. Remember: Prayer is simply talking with God.

We will only pray when we realize how dependent we are on God and we trust Him to hear our prayers and answer them according to His will. Prideful, self-sufficient people will never pray, because they don't believe they need God's help.

God wants us to bring our every concern to Him in prayer and to be persistent in our praying. But we don't see the whole picture, and sometimes we ask for things that are unwise or even wrong. God wants us to know His will and He reveals it to us both through the Bible and through the guidance of His Spirit. Seek God's will when you pray, and He will help you know it. God loves us, and He is concerned about every detail of our lives, both big and small.

God knows what is best for us, and we need to learn to trust Him for the outcome. Sometimes God answers "Yes" when we ask Him for something. But sometimes His answer is "Not yet" or even "No." And sometimes His answer is simply "Trust Me, even if you don't understand."

Prayers is speaking to God - but sometimes He uses our times of prayerful silence to speak to us in return. He may simply give us an inner assurance of His presence, or He may guide us in a certain direction. Pray most of all because God wants your fellowship and you need His fellowship on this journey He has set before you.

We not only belong to God, we also belong to each other. We aren't traveling alone on this journey God has given; others are traveling with us. We are traveling together on this journey, sharing its joys and bearing each other's burdens and heartaches. If someone stumbles, we help them get to their feet; if someone veers off course, we urge them back. On this journey we are all brothers and sisters in the same family - the family of God. If we belong to Christ, we also belong to each other; if we have committed our lives to Him, we are also committed to each other. The reason is simple: We need each other.

The Bible is God's gift to you, but your fellow Christians are His gift to you also. God has given us to one another. One of the main tools God uses to shape us and make us more like Christ is our fellowship with other Christians. In fact, unless we have active contact with other believers our spiritual lives will be stunted.

We should come together to encourage one another. I have never met a person who didn't have problems of some kind. I also have never met a Christian who didn't face temptations or pressures, or sometimes even wondered if it was worth it being a Christian. This is why we need each other's encouragement and wisdom. Sometimes we encourage someone without even being aware of it. We also encourage one another on a personal level. Whenever we are with other believers - God can lift us up and increase our faith through their encouragement and counsel.

Christian fellowship isn't limited to a church congregation; some of your deepest fellowship may be with just one or two others. Don't take this journey God has given you alone. God is with you, and so are His people. You need them - and they need you.

Becoming a Christian is the work of a moment; being a Christian is the work of a lifetime. Ask God to show you any area of your life where sin still rules, and then repent of it. Every day a battle rages in our hearts between our wills and God's will. God now lives within us by His Holy Spirit, but our old nature is still alive, striving to gain the upper hand and control us. Instead of reflecting Christ in our lives, we reflect the unbelieving world. Our old nature - our selfishness, our evil desires, our old attitudes and patterns of living - must die.

To submit to Christ means to commit every area of our lives to His authority, asking Him to change us according to His will. It means we turn from everything wrong and ask God to replace it all with that which is good and pure.

Repentance...submission...obedience...these are the steps we must take for God to fill us with His Spirit so we become more like Christ. And we must take these steps daily, because we need God's help daily. Being filled with the Holy Spirit isn't a once-for-all event, but a continuous reality every day of our lives. Yield your life daily to Christ's Lordship. Give each day to Him, so that at its end you can look back and thank Him for being with you, as He promised.