Faith: It's the Key

Faith. We hear it all the time: "The mind is a powerful thing. Think it and you can have it."

One thing is certain; We ALL want it! So, just how does one get the faith of a mustard seed? We start with a simple little thing called, "Thanks!" In all seriousness, it really is that simple.

"It is good to give thanks to the LORD And to sing praises to Your name, O Most High; [2] To declare Your lovingkindness in the morning and Your faithfulness by night, [3] With the ten-stringed lute and with the harp, With resounding music upon the lyre. [4] For You, O LORD, have made me gladly what You have done, I will sing for joy at the works of Your Hands." (Psalm 92, NASB)

King David is the same David who with the help of God, protected his sheep from both a bear and a lion! He is also the very same David who slew Goliath. King David was truly the best King our nation has had to date. Do You know WHY that is? Because David LOVED the LORD and he THANKED Him for EVERYTHING!!!

David had faith that he would beat Goliath. He KNEW God was for him. How did he have that depth of faith? He had it because he KNEW God. How did he know God? He used his mind to build His relationship with God. See for yourself:

[7]I will bless the LORD who has counseled me; Indeed, my mind instructs me in the night. [8] I have set the LORD continually before me; Because He is at my right hand, I will not be shaken. [9] Therefore my heart is gland and my glory rejoices; My flesh also will dwell securely.[10] For You will not abandon my soul to Sheol; Nor will You allow Your Holy One to undergo decay. [11] you will make known to me the path of life; In Your presence is fullness of joy; In Your right hand there are pleasures forever. (Psalm 16:7-11, NASB, a Mikhtam of David)

Jesus tells us something very interesting about faith:

[6] And the Lord said, "If you had faith like a mustard seed, you would say to this mulberry tree, 'Be uprooted and be planted in the sea'; and it would obey you. (Luke 17:6, NASB)

[20] And He said to them, "Because of the littleness of your faith; for truly I say to you, if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move; and nothing will be impossible to you. (Matthew 17:20, NASB)

Faith is obviously a game changer. With it you can move mountains. How do you get faith to grow as big as a mustard seed? You thank God EVERY day. As David did, you bless the LORD for all he has shown you. Acknowledge Him. It is in doing this, that your eyes will begin to open up wide enough to see things in the Spiritual Light.

We are all given a measure of faith: [3] For through the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think more highly of himself than he out to think; but to think so as to have sound judgment, as God has allotted to each a measure of faith. (Romans 12:3, NASB)

The true question is, "What are you going to do with YOUR measure of faith?" Are you going to feed it or are you going to let it simply lie dormant? That my friends is the element of 'Free Will'. God is not going to force you to use your faith, but I assure you, He has tried to arouse your interest regarding your faith! Not only does He tell you about the very power that faith holds for you, He also reveals how your faith can indeed help protect you!:

[16] in addition to all, taking up the shield of faith with which you will be able to extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. (Ephesians 6:16, NASB)

As your faith grows, things begin to happen that will help your faith to grow. God even tells us that this will be the case:

[16] For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. [17] For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith, as it is written, "BUT THE RIGHTEOUS man SHALL LIVE BY FAITH."

I don't know if you are living today with the measure of faith you were given at birth or if perhaps things have happened in your life that have grown your faith in the living God over the years. I can tell you that I truly have gone from faith to faith and I have been blessed to have seen glorious wonders. Many that I have shared in my most recent book, "You Are Worthy Too: The Proof is in the Pudding"

If you are truly wanting to grow your faith, buy my book today. It is a quick, easy, interesting true life story of a girl who ventured through hell and came out with the keys to an abundant life! Don't delay another day, you deserve an abundant life too! Click here to Gain the keys to abundance today for only $13 ~ 

May you be blessed in your purchase. Father, today I thank you for all you have done in my life. I thank you for calling me forth to share my story. How cool my life has been thus far. Only you could weave such a tale! I thank you for all the color in my life. I thank you for all the blessings I received along the way. I thank you for the lives you put in my path allowing me to shine your light into lives. I long to be a worker in the harvest. One who reveals your glory so brightly that countless are dazzled by your brilliant light. May my true life story, my never ending adventurous life be the line that draws them closer to You! Thank you LORD God for using me as I always dreamt you might! In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

Wendy, Mom of Many, walks with God

copyright: WendyGlidden 2015

Dear Reader

There are different kinds of service, but we serve the same Lord.
- 1 Corinthians 12:5 (NLT) 
Amen to that! The Lord called me forth a few years ago. This is actually the first Dear Reader Letter I wrote for the books that God had me write. I have been praying for my books to find those that it contains a message or two for. Please stand in agreement with this prayer if my Dear Reader Letter speaks to you today! Dear Reader,
First I want to take this opportunity to thank you for purchasing my book! This is the beginning of my story. The first full sixteen years of them are in this volume. I have also included two bonus chapters from upcoming titles!
All my life I dreamt of being a writer. I wanted my books to fill people with hope. As I grew up, I continued to write off and on but I had long given up on ever publishing anything to encourage others or brighten their days.
As I approached my 40s, I began questioning life and relationships. Then a life event of my own caused me to fall to my knees. I had finally come to the end of my own strength and determination. It was in giving everything to God, He gave me the desires of my heart.
I truly hope you enjoy this first book full of true chapters from my life.
When God convicted me, He showed me how He had been there all along. You get some insights as you are shown things through the rearview mirror!
There is much the Lord is leading me to share. I hope you stick around as I continue to share my life story as well as other titles. Look for all the details on You Are Worthy Too Website! The link to take you there is on my connect with me page at the end of the book.
Had someone asked me a year ago if I thought my life was worthy of publishing I would have laughed and quickly said, “No”.
God thought otherwise. He called me out to share my story over a year ago. While full of fear, I stepped out in Faith.
I pray my story leaves you inspired, encouraged and full of faith. I am humbled by your purchase. Be blessed and be a blessing!
Love, Wendy Glidden
For more of my story, check out my sales page for "The Proof is in the Pudding" https://www.createspace.com/5191658

Regarding the Reliability of the Scriptures . . .

Journal Entry: Session V: Reliability of the Scriptures

Wendy Glidden

HUM-114A-ON15-SU15: New Testament- Block 1

Professor: Dr. Lee

Colorado Christian University: College of Adult and Graduate Studies

May 31, 2015

And he said to me, “These words are faithful and true”; and the Lord, the God of the spirits of the prophets, sent His angel to show to His bondservants the things which must soon take place. (Revelations 22:6, NASB)

To me, the testimony of what happened to Paul on the road to Damascus combined with the truths that his letters reveal is the most compelling evidence of the reliability of the message in the New Testament. Paul was forever changed after that encounter. He met Christ, had an intervention, and then spent the rest of his life sharing the good news and fighting against false teachers to his own self detriment at times. A person would not take a complete turn in life like that, putting their very life on the line, if Christ were not the real deal. “Saul’s conversion makes him pray, see a vision, enjoy acceptance as a brother in the community of Jesus’ disciples, receive the Holy Spirit, proclaim Jesus to be God’s son and the Christ, and suffer the kind of persecution he once perpetrated.” (Gundry, pg345)

Paul let’s his history be known and openly admits to being present at the stoning of Stephen revealing God’s grace through his life. I know myself it is only out of the love of the Lord that I have openly admitted my faults in the past as proof of God’s love. This is exactly what Luke explains Paul as having done in Acts 22:20: [20] ‘And when the blood of Your witness Stephen was being shed, I also was standing by approving, and watching out for the coats of those who were slaying him.’

I know for me when I read Paul’s letters I feel his heart for God. Sometimes when I am reading things he is testifying to and teaching I truly have the book come to life and it is like I can hear Paul himself! I have the same experience when I read about King David as well as the things he is credited with writing.

I know that those are mere feelings but I also know the Holy Spirit speaks to me regarding the very same truths I read in the bible. In all honesty the more I read my bible, the more I am convinced that it is the Word of God. It is weird to discover words of wisdom, advice and truth in the bible that I have personally had told to me by the Holy Spirit throughout my life. How I wish I had sought the Word long before I did!

A letter from Paul to Timothy points to the Old Testament Scriptures stating that they teach us wisdom that leads to salvation through faith: [15] and that from childhood you have known the sacred writings which are able to give you the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. [16] All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; [17] so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work. (2 Timothy 3:15-17, NASB)

When it comes to the words that Paul wrote, Peter tells us clearly that they are reliable and useful: [15] and regard the patience of our Lord as salvation; just as also our beloved brother Paul, according to the wisdom given him, wrote to you, [16] as also in all his letters, speaking in them of these things, in which are some things hard to understand, which the untaught and unstable distort, as they do also the rest of the Scriptures, to their own destruction. (2 Peter 3:15-16)

Gundry tells us this about the importance of the way in which Peter referred to Paul: “The description of Paul as “our beloved brother” (2 Peter 3:15) is what an apostolic contemporary and equal would write.” (Gundry, pg 532)

Peter would not have backed Paul’s words and called him beloved if he too did not recognize that Paul was speaking truth. I see this referral by Peter, the rock of the church, back to Paul as another reason his letters are reliable.

I think when it comes to the testimony of John regarding Jesus, John’s testimony is very reliable. For me, it is the story about Nicodemus that he tells that truly gives reliability to what he shares. Nicodemus was a ruler of the Jews and for him to say what John wrote he said is quite something in itself. If this were not a true account, it would surely have been disputed at the very time of its writing! [1] Now there was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews; [2] this man came to Jesus by night and said to Him, “Rabbi, we know that You have come from God as a teacher; for no one can do these signs that You do unless God is with him.” (John 3:1-2, NASB) Our text book says, “The story of Jesus and Nicodemus, a member of the Sanhedrin, illustrates Jesus’ omniscience of the interior state of human beings. Nicodemus is an example of those who believe in the name of Jesus solely because of the signs he performs but whom Jesus knows to be still in need of a renewal so radical as to constitute a new birth, one that originates in heaven above and happens through belief in Jesus as God’s unique Son who descended from heaven and ascended back to heaven by way of being lifted up on the cross.” (Gundry, pg 300)

Last and certainly not least, I think in the sharing of the good news with the Beran Jews, when we are told that they went to the Scriptures to verify that what Paul had spoken was truth, shows that those who had studied the Word long before I ever picked it up, found Paul’s testimony to be reliable and true!: [11] Now these were more noble-minded than those in Thessalonica, for they received the word with great eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see whether these things were so. [12] Therefore many of them believed, along with a number of prominent Greek women and men. (Acts 17:11-12, NASB)

References

The MacArthur Study Bible, 2006, John MacArthur, Thomas Nelson Publishing

A Survey of the New Testament, 2012, Robert H. Gundry, Zondervan