Great comments yesterday. I enjoy getting to know you a little better by reading your thoughts. Jennifer's comments gave me yet another way to look at Proverbs' teachings which I hadn't considered. You have two choices: Listen to your parents and be wise, or be a fool.
Now on to today's lesson...
We know that faith is a very important characteristic of a godly woman. But what if I look at myself and realize I don't have the kind of faith Mary had? Maybe I want to have it, but I know in my heart of hearts that I don't. Maybe I know that if I were asked by God to do what He asked Mary to do, I would not be so gracious, so submissive. This problem ranges across all ages and situations. What can I do to increase my faith? This might seem like a pretty basic question to those of you who have been serving God for a while. Yet even His most faithful servants sometimes yield to fear or doubt. Paul seems to have done that because God is careful to reassure him in Acts 18:9-10 that he should not be afraid but continue to preach.
You have probably guessed your assignment for today. How does one increase her faith? I don't just want advice; I want Scripture to back it up. This is good practice for helping someone who needs help increasing her faith.
2 comments:
Growing Faith made me think of Esther. In Esther 4, Esther' uncle asked her to do something very brave in order to save the Jewish people from being killed. Esther's first response was to explain the very real danger his request could put her in -- this was her excuse to him and it was actually a legitimate fear -- she was risking being killed herself!
When her uncle appealed to her again, Esther decided to obey/heed her uncle's instructions. But she did ask for help -- she asked for all the Jews and all her maidservants (I like to think of them as her girlfriends) to fast with her for three days to support her.
This gives us some very real, specific things we can do to strengthen our faith.
1) Obey. Try to do what is right, as much as you can, even if you are not sure you can. As in Debbie's example of Paul, his faith strengthening followed his action -- or at least worked along side it! He was already preaching the word when he needed some help. Often our actions have to come first.
2) Ask for help and support from God and from friends. Pray to God for stronger faith. Pray for wisdom. Ask friends/brethren to pray for you and with you. Girlfriends are great for holding you up during times of weakness and doubt.
This is a great response. I love how it is especially tailored for women.
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