Choosing to Walk by Faith
"For we walk by faith, not by sight."
2 Corinthians 5:7 KJV
Deciding to walk by faith is uncomfortable and unknown. This decision requires the relinquishing of our desires, and breaking away from our own comfortability. One of the most challenging aspects of my spiritual growth by far has been learning to walk by faith. This discipline has been applied in every facet of my life over the last few years. My career, relationships, dreams, and goals have all required me to walk by faith at least once. Each has demanded that I substitute my discomfort for faith. Even this blog causes me some level of discomfort. However the messages I receive each week inspires me to keep going, and reinforces that this blog is part of my purpose. I choose to continue walking by faith, and putting myself out there in hopes that it will reach the people it is meant to touch.
Walking by faith in my opinion, causes us to go against our human nature. Many of us have to “see it to believe it.” However, I like Saint Augustine’s quote better. “Faith is to believe what you do not see; the reward of this faith is to see what you believe.” We often act based on physical perception (i.e. sight), rather than analyzing situations on a deeper level. If we were to do this, we could take inventory of the situation at hand, bring it to God, and then react based on where we are led spiritually. The problem with this is, God rarely calls for us to handle situations the way we believe they should be handled. Our disregard to His will often leads to stress and discontentment. Are you able to walk by faith, and trust that God will handle your situation?
Faith is defined as having, “complete trust or confidence in someone or something.” Learning to have complete trust and confidence in God is a lesson learned over time. Like one of my spiritual mentors, Heather Lindsey, has stated many times, “it starts with the little things.” Through trusting God with small things first, you learn to relinquish more to Him and grow your confidence. You begin to see that He is leading you down a path, and teaching you lessons that will aid you in the future. When I started trusting God with the small things in my life, I began to mature in my spiritual walk. Over time, my stress and anxiety was replaced by true peace. I learned that no matter how the situation appeared on the outside, I was going to come through.
My most profound realization of this fact was during my 3L year of law school. During this time, I honestly had no idea how I was going to pay the remainder of my tuition. Any “sane” person would have been panicking. However, that peace would not allow me to panic. I knew that God had brought me this far, and was not about to allow this predicament to be the end. Every student that has been through college or any furthering education program knows that the bursar’s office does not play about their money. You will swiftly be kicked out of your classes if you cannot pay. Inexplicably, I was not harassed once.
About three months into the semester, I remember sitting with my great-aunt Ann in her room. The phone rang, and it was my mom. She had turned the car around, and was heading back home. Apparently as she was looking through the mail, she saw what appeared to be a check addressed to me. I was confused, but excited wondering where the money could have come from. Immediately, my mind began to churn.
When I opened the letter, I could not believe what I was reading. It turned out that my grandaddy had set aside an account for me. The crazy thing is that my grandaddy had been deceased at the time for TWELVE YEARS. That means the money had been sitting in an account for me all this time. If I had received the money at any other time within the last twelve years, it most certainly would have been used on something else. Can you believe that? God gave me peace because he had a solution all along. God placed it on my grandaddy’s heart to put money aside for me, and was making provision for a problem that hadn’t even manifested yet. At that moment I knew that no matter what obstacle came my way, this career was my destiny. He had truly made a way out of no way. My walking by faith, and not by sight paid off.
It is essential that we as Christians lead by example during this worldwide pandemic. While the world is panicking and constantly bombarded with news headlines, we must keep the faith. We cannot afford to walk by sight right now. Of course, we should take the necessary precautions like social distancing, wearing face masks, and washing our hands . . . but we also need to have peace. We need peace so that we can encourage others and lend a helping hand when needed. I know there is no clear end in sight, and the time table is constantly changing. However, this is the perfect opportunity to exercise walking by faith, and not by sight.
I believe the most threatening roadblock to our faith walk is timing. It may seem doable for a little while, but can seem hopeless when prolonged. I am continually learning that our time table is different from God’s. We live in time, while He lives in eternity.
My topic for next week, delves into the concept of God’s timing. I have many friends who are constantly encouraging each other and sharing their wisdom on the topic. I look forward to sharing some of them with you!
See you all next, Sunday! Keep on walking!