It’s All About Faith and Trust

Although I cannot speak for everyone alike, but for me when it comes to having any sort of relationship with Almighty God it is all about faith and trust. Firstly, God is not a human being. God is Spirit so the only way we can possibly perceive of God is through faith. Our eyes cannot see Him, our ears cannot hear Him, nor can any of our five senses detect the presence of an invisible Spirit. Therefore the only way that a physical being can have a relationship with a non-physical being is through some kind of a common denominator. Faith is the substance of things unseen. This is how God Himself says we are to know Him. Scripture tells us that it is impossible to please God without faith.

“And without faith it is impossible to please God because anyone who comes to Him must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who earnestly seek Him.” Hebrews 11:6

This appears to be somewhat of a conundrum, an enigma, bartering, or some sort of mystification. In order to achieve something of great value that you want or need it has to be preceded by something else of great value. In order to please God, you have to first believe in Him. That seems so contrary to how the human mind works. We want to feel something through our human senses first then we think about whether or not to accept what we feel. To say that we have to believe first without sensing anything that we can prove to our mind, that is just not how we were taught to process things. It does not compute!

If our belief in God is that essential to mankind, then how do we get there without relying upon the senses that supposedly God give us? That means we actually have to develop trust in something that is unseen or unrevealed through our senses. Again, this is so opposite of how we were taught to relate to things. Because of this, it is easily understandable that many people have a hard time trying to relate to God… heaven forbid to have any sort of personal relationship with a Spirit being. Not all people are skeptical because there are some that seem to have faith and trust in God without seeing or mentally knowing anything. If someone tells them that you have to have faith in God, then that is where their heart takes them without question or reservation. What a gift from God that must be to have faith and trust in Him no matter what?

It is my personal belief that we are all made differently with different capacities to learn and grasp things. For some it is easy, and for others, it might be hard. What is easy for some is very rough and almost impossible for others, and vice versa. Perhaps it becomes a bit easier to grasp if we go back to a place in our minds that we mutually accept when it comes to belief in God. Since we know that we exist, and the entire universe exists, then logic tells us that something caused all this to happen. Whatever that something is called is the reason for existence. If we accept that as fact, then belief in some creative force becomes possible. Unless we think the universe formed itself then it is very possible that some power or some force caused all things to come into existence. If you think the universe created itself then you have quite a way to go before belief in God is at all possible. Although doubt may be still in your mind and you do not know how to define such a creative force, the seed of belief comes into your rational mind.

When you acquire just a morsel of a seed of belief then it only needs to be watered and fertilized until it began to sprout. Once the seed sprouts then someone has to nurture it until it actually turns into a thing. That thing would be the birth of belief in a Creator. From that point, you would only need to learn more things about this Creator force that some of us call God. In fact, once you get to that point God Himself is the One that shows up to teach you about Him. “When the pupil is ready to learn the Teacher always shows up. But before all of this can happen, the heart must be open to receiving, otherwise, not even God would make you believe if you are unwilling to open your heart. We don’t like to say what God can or cannot do but according to His Word, He will not force Himself upon anyone against their will to believe or to disbelieve.

Now let’s go back to the beginning of this subject, it is all about faith and trust. You must believe in God before He will reward you with any sort of relationship. There is no other way to bridge the gap between that which is physical and that which is spirit. Hence, “it is impossible to please God without faith.” So let us just start with an ounce of faith that you can build upon because God rewards those who diligently and earnestly seek Him. That is only half of the battle. Now you have to learn genuine trust in something that your senses cannot prove exists.

If you recall being a child, there are many things that you had to learn by taking a blind leap of faith. You might not remember but your first step was done by trying something that you did not know how to do but was willing to try. The more you tried the easier it became until one step, two steps, three, and then you learned how to walk. Perhaps if you learned how to roller skate or ride a bike, it was done similarly. You took a blind first step not knowing the final results. You were willing to give it a try until you did it. Swimming was learned the same way. Someone convinced you to take a blind leap of faith and trust that they would be there to catch you. There are so many things we learned as human beings in life that was done by taking a blind leap of faith until you trusted enough to continue the learning process.

Developing a personal relationship with God requires that blind leap of faith for many of us. Otherwise, you become stuck behind the quagmire. The older you get the harder it is to break through the hard shell that you build over the years. Sometimes it requires a tragedy, a loss, or something unmentionable to bring you to your knees before God. If that is what it takes, then God will allow things to happen that ultimately saves the immortal soul that He is always seeking. God does not cause bad things to happen, that is on you. However, He will allow those of whom He already knows that belong to Him to go through certain experiences knowing full well what the final outcome will be in advance. I guess in human terms we say a hard head makes a soft behind. Another way of thinking is that for some of us it requires a certain amount of pain to convince us to take a blind leap of faith. “No pain — No gain!

For me, once I was willing to take that blind leap of faith it was just a matter of time because God rewarded me with other tools in His goody sack that made me trust in Him more and more each day. I finally reached the point that I no longer required my mortal senses to validate my faith nor did I require something physical to trust in God. There was something unseen, something that I could not reach out and touch, or hear, but I learned to value the unseen more than the seen. Now I understand that this seen world is temporary while the unseen spiritual realm of God is the eternal one. God no longer has to show me anything physical. My faith and trust in Him is all I need. He rewards me back in kind. If you abide in Me, He says, I will abide in you. Once you get to that point it is all a matter of running out the clock of time until He is ready to bring you home.

So yes, it is all about faith and trust but as mentioned, neither are easy to come by until God makes it possible for us to come to Him. Although it appears to be something that we have to do on our own, most of the work is done for us once we are willing to give God a chance. Take that blind leap of faith and see what happens. Once your heart is open, I can guarantee that it will be filled by the Spirit. Yes, we learn differently. God knows that about us. He is patient beyond measure because He knows His own and will do everything to bring you back home into His care. God is Great ALL the TIME! Selah!!!!!