Thursday, January 21, 2010

Asking Faith

Luke 17:5-6 The apostles said to the Lord, "Increase our faith!" And the Lord said, "If you had faith like a grain of mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, 'Be uprooted and planted in the sea,' and it would obey you.”

I have always been convicted by this passage. I want to have faith, I want to believe, and then when I see that even faith the size of a mustard seed can move a mulberry tree I have to ask, "How small is my faith?” I have never been able to move a tree just with faith. I have, however, experienced the moving of a tree by experienced tree movers and the right equipment. I think if we look at this passage closely we will see some important lessons for us in learning faith.

The first lesson is the "ASK." The apostles had to come to a point in their lives where they were able to ask for an increase of faith. We come to this point in our lives in a variety of ways. Sometimes it is through problems we can't overcome. We cry out, “Lord help us!” Sometimes it is through conviction about sin in our lives, and we come asking for forgiveness. At other times it is just a need to draw close to God; therefore we ask God to increase our faith. Asking is difficult at times because of pride. Yet the power to receive is in the asking.

Another lesson is found in the application given to the apostles about faith. Jesus said, "If you had faith, you could say." These are strong words that challenge us to action. The application of faith is more difficult than the asking of faith. It is where we put into practice our faithfulness, which we receive through asking. Just asking alone is not enough; it is in the practice of faithfulness that we discover our ability to have faith.

So here is the deal. Putting faith into action begins at the point of our asking for faith and then continues in the application of what we asked for. I wonder how many times have I asked for something by faith believing that it would happen, and then never put into practice the thing I was asking for?

Father, increase my faith. Amen.

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