The problem with walking by faith is that you just can't get your hands around the matter.

     And of course, you and I were created to live only by faith.

     So then the issue is control, isn't it?  That desperate need to strive for predictability.  Soldier of The Cross, it is not possible to serve the Lord and avoid faith.

     So then, it must be the best thing for us.  Why is the flesh so unwilling?  Many times it is because there is so little agreement with God in prayer.  There must be articulated agreement.  Submission. 

     There is no adventure greater than living by faith.
     There is no true security except living by faith.  It is only lack of experience with God that makes it feel so risky.

     Most importantly, there is no knowing God, but by faith.

     Tell Him today.  Aloud.
     Commit to taking up The Cross and following Him.  No matter what.

     There is nothing else.
     There is no one else.

      Here is the issue - either He is true or He is not.

     Soldier of The Cross, can you say that you believe that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose? (Romans 8:28)  
 

     Either you believe it or you don't.
     Either you put your weight down on His Word, or you choose to hold the matter in your own limited human hands.
     Either your words reflect His, or they reflect your refusal to agree with Him.
     Either your mind clings to His reality and promises, or it massages and rehearses the problem.

     It is not a matter of circumstances.  It is a matter of choice.  Will you choose faith, or not?

     Is He able or is He not?
     Does He love you or does He not?

     What has He said?
     Can He be trusted?

     ". . . Let God be true, but every man a liar. . ."   (Romans 3:4)

      He has promised to be our God, and we will be His people.  (Hebrews 8:10)

     We have a Lord who is not only all knowing, all present and all powerful, but who cherishes us and attends to us.  We must keep this in mind when we pray.  So often it is tempting to pray as though He has to be awakened to the matter.

     We tend to operate in a microcosm of happenings.  For many the Christian life is a gauntlet of tension and release. 

     Our personal God intends that we should think about Him all the time.  Pray about all things.  Have His word written on our hearts and always in our mouths.   We were not created to bear worry, fear, resentment or pride.  We were created for a relationship with Him, and this includes the manifestation of that relationship as it is expressed in the Body of Christ and in fellowship with one another.

     What have you ever gone after with all your might? 

     Everything God does is a miracle.

     The greatest miracle is that of a soul set free. 

     Just before I met the Lord, I called my godly father and asked him how he knew the Gospel was true.  Without hesitation he said "because of changed lives."  And of course, I knew exactly what he meant.

     The week before, I had read Chuck Colson's "Born Again"  and Corrie Ten Boom's "The Hiding Place."  I hid the books and would not have admitted I was reading them.    But there was no denying it.  No story was like any other, yet the theme was always the same.  Love.  Release.  Transformation.  Grace.

     When there is availability, He comes in and nothing is ever the same.  

     Do not tire of telling about the miracle in your own life.  He touched us, and we did not deserve it.  He drew us to Himself and we did not deserve it.  He filled us and we did  not deserve it.  He reveals Himself to us now and He leads us.  Maturity does not merit blessing.  It is still about grace.

     Be bold. 
     And, pray in confidence, knowing that He longs to reveal Himself to those you are praying for. 

     Those who are around you know what is most important to you.

     It comes down to choice.  Obedience.  The use of time.  The tongue.  The countenance.

      Soldier of The Cross, those of us who want Him are completely transparent and are always on display.  Onlookers can identify what gets our attention. 

     We must never let the urgent take place of the important.  There are always things that tug at us inside and out.  The tendency is to try to deal with everything and that is not effective.   It is easy to fall into the trap of thinking it is possible to get to a place where things will stay on an even keel.

    Not in this life!  It will not happen.   He said He would make the way even by the experience of following Him and living in Him.  Before I met Christ, the most obvious evidence of His existence was the stability in the lives of Christians who were going through hardship and loss.

         You can't preach it to your children unless you are willing to live it out before them in the home. 

     We value Him. 
     We value His Word.
     We value walking by faith.
     We value His Body.
     We value being changed and being disciplined.
     We value The Cross.

     It begins in the prayer life.  Tell Him.
     Aloud.
     Today.

     The issue is, is it your way or His way?

     Soldier of The Cross,  do you need to lead or are you wililng to follow, as He has instructed? 

     You must make this decision.    Is it according to His Word, or is going  to be according to the emotional demand?  Who is right?

     What is the bottom line?  Do you know better than He?  Will He forsake you?  Of course not.

     Soldier, determine to agree with God and tell Him so in prayer.  You will find the most eager listener and One who knows the end from the beginning.

     Is there anything else?

     How far are you willing to go with Him?

     It is the real question.  What is most important to you?  It is not a feeling or a craving - it is a decision made, based on what is true.

     Choose Him.

     He is practical.
     He is effective.
     He is clean.
     He is personal.
     He is holy.
     He is powerful.

     He is Love!             

   The writer to the Hebrews says we must ". . . strive diligently to enter into the rest . . ."

     After the verses about rest, we are reminded of the power of the Word, and then shown that we have a high priest who intercedes for us.

     So why is there so little rest?  How many can say, "Yes, I am tasting the Sabbath Rest of Hebrews 4."

     Resting in the Lord is a discipline and means turning a deaf ear to the insistent voices that press us to feel responsible to bear everything.  Resting in the Lord means going to Him and putting the burden down, using deliberately formed communication.  Resting in the Lord means focusing the thoughts on His Word instead of letting the mind gnaw on the situation.

     Resting in the Lord means not talking about what might happen, what should happen, what could have happened, or what did happen.  It means agreeing with God and doing the next thing as unto the Lord.

     Soldier of The Cross, give it to Him.  Perhaps over and over.
     Then, look up and move on.

     Soldier of The Cross, be reminded that His Love is personal.

     It is easy to forget. He who called you continues to oversee each tiny detail of your life.  So He says in His Word.

          Lord, forgive me for blasting into the things that seem so important.  My heart’s desire is to live according to your Word.  You are so attractive to me and I want to know you, no matter what the cost. So Lord, take me today.  Please do whatever has to be done in the deepest of places, in order to make me more like you.

     I understand there is no one else.  There is nothing else.

     Obedience results in victory.

     Victory is not the experience of winning, nor is it necessarily the sensation of a job well done.  It is knowing a choice was made in agreement with God.

     Many a Soldier of The Cross has experienced the sting of humiliation or loss when doing the right thing.  After all, He who is Perfect and left Glory for us, suffered a painful, public death.  The Resurrection was private except for the unseen hosts.  Yet, the Cross was a tremendous victory.

     And, so it is for many of us.  We must make choices according to God's Word, and those choices do not always expand the comfort zone.  We are told that the race is to be run and at the end, we will receive the runner's crown.  Our goal is not the here and now, and we must bear that in mind.  Otherwise we become shortsighted and addicted to accolades and temporary satisfaction.

     He alone sees the end from the beginning. 
     He knows the cost. 
     He still asks that we trust Him and do as He says.

     There simply isn't anything else.