The Powerful Force of Faith

In the farming community where I grew up, I attended a Baptist church where hymns of faith were favored by the worshipers. Faith, like hope, is a power force directed inward toward oneself and outward to God. Salvation and forgiveness are received through faith, made possible by God's unconditional love.

Faith encourages believers to reach for their highest achievement. It includes trusting in God’s deliverance from sin. Faith is an action-oriented virtue calling for the highest moral behavior. A familiar hymn expresses the resounding theme that faith is the victory that overcomes every temptation you face.

Faith is acquired by trusting in Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord. It is the anchor that grips the solid rock Jesus represents. Actually, faith is a gift from God to each believer, and it binds us to him and all the resources at his command. Faith keeps you anchored to God regardless of life's ups and downs.                            

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Every child of God can defeat the world, and our faith is what gives us this victory. No one can defeat the world without having faith in Jesus as the Son of God.

~1 John 5:4-5 Contemporary English Version

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The Ties That Bind God's People

 So much of what governs our lives are the social, religious, and legal rules we internalized from childhood. The ties that bind us together as a family and society should be the Ten Commandments God gave to Moses at Mount Sinai. It would take generations of struggle for the Israelites to understand and apply the commandments to their lives.

Although a newborn baby is a treasure from God and a source of joy, rarely is a couple prepared for all the adjustments this new baby will require. As a newborn baby interrupts the status quo of a family system, so the Ten Commandments would change the value system for binding God’s people together.

The commandments reflect God’s love for his people just as rules and boundaries represent a parent’s love. God’s love and mercy are revealed most completely in the gift of Christ Jesus, who became the ultimate sacrifice for our sins. Thank God for the gift of faith to believe and trust in his kindness and compassion.  

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[Moses told the people of Israel,] “Meditate upon all the laws I have given you today, and pass them on to your children. These laws are not mere words – they are your life!”

~Deuteronomy 32:46-47 The Living Bible

 

God loves you and has chosen you as his own special people. So be gentle, kind, humble, meek, and patient, and forgive anyone who does you wrong, just as Christ has forgiven you. Love is more important than anything else. It is what ties everything completely together.  

~Colossians  3:12-14 Contemporary English Version

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Subscribe to the Attitudes Answers podcast on your favorite podcast platform to hear this and other 2-minute features 3 days every week.