MORE FAITH II

By asking for more faith is to believe (even shaking in our boots) that we will get more faith. Or, we convince ourselves that by asking we have fulfilled some Biblical narrative without really believing it could happen. Open honesty is imperative to asking.

Truly asking for more faith is also wanting it and being humble enough to receive instead of getting. Getting is a personal effort and some of that (at least desire) is needed to ‘get more faith.’ But receiving is without effort except our effort in humility and poverty of spirit. But faith is an important effort because: “Without faith it is impossible to please God (Hebrews 11:6). “Through faith we are saved” (Ephesians. 2:8). The only one to think it might be optional would be a person, not God.

Faith activates our prayers, even the ability to try and scratch out some kind of prayer. Faith becomes vitally important in trying to grab hold of something we cannot process tangibly but believe it to be the very trinity of Father, Son and Holy Spirit with whom we are communicating. Though our prayer and faith may be staggered and lame it is fortunately not fully up to us. Paul, an apostle, wrote: “Who is the one who will condemn? Christ is the one who died (and more than that, he was raised), who is at the right hand of God, and who also is interceding for us. Who will separate us from the love of Christ?” (Romans 8:34-35) That seems to really help prayer life when faithless and without any power to have the Son of God, Jesus Christ in our corner sitting with the Father and working stuff out. Faith believes without seeing.

“Have faith in God. I tell you the truth, you can say to this mountain, ‘May you be lifted up and thrown into the sea,’ and it will happen. But you must really believe it will happen and have no doubt in your heart.” Jesus