I believe that all believers have a right and a responsibility to have a faith that touches God’s heart. We look with the Holy Spirit’s help to accomplish these three things:
Encourage you.
To build your faith.
To ultimately build your trust in God.
All of this comes through your experience of God’s Love, direction and power. God’s Love is always at work…God is Love. That is His nature and He can’t and won’t violate that. But we either don’t know that or we don’t understand it. Jesus talking to the Samaritan woman at the well In John 4:21- 24 says,
“Jesus declared, “Believe me, woman, a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. You Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know, for salvation is from the Jews. Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth.”
There will be people in your life, loving people, caring people, helpful people. Often these people may accidentally and without malice or hidden agenda, tell you of a Father in Heaven that is acting contrary to His scripturally stated and proven nature. They may tell you things that aren’t true about God at all. Let’s look at Jeremiah 29:8-13,
“Yes, this is what the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, says: “Do not let the prophets and diviners among you deceive you. Do not listen to the dreams you encourage them to have. They are prophesying lies to you in my name. I have not sent them,” declares the LORD. This is what the LORD says: “When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will come to you and fulfill my gracious promise to bring you back to this place. For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you,” declares the LORD, “and will bring you back from captivity.”
Look at all of the encouragement AROUND that favorite scripture! God’s very nature is love, He’s always going to work towards your ultimate best interest. Is that best interest your winning the lotto if you have a gambling problem? Is your best interest winning an
“all you can eat dinner” if you have food addictions?
Rom 8:28 says,
“And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.”
It must work together for good, if you love Him, because we KNOW He loves you. Look back in Jeremiah,
“Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you,” declares the LORD, “and will bring you back from captivity.”
To me this speaks of how I learned to truly reach my Father. It was when I learned to worship that I positioned myself to reach God. Remember Jesus said, “You Samaritans worship what you do not know, God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth.”
How can we if we don’t even KNOW Him like that? Now think of all the names of God, your worship includes the names and nature of God. This is how we come to know Him.
His names should encourage you. Let’s consider a few,
I Am That I Am
My Advocate
Comforter in Sorrow
Wonderful Counselor
My Strong Deliverer
Our Father
A Sure Foundation
God Almighty
God Who Avenges Me
Our Guide
Our Help
A Great High Priest
Bread of Life
My Confidence
Faithful and True
A Consuming Fire
My Friend
These are some of the things about God that encourage you. These are the things about God that build up our faith. Until you receive him as HE is…you’re short changing yourself. Until you SEE Him as He is…how can He be your God?