Testament of Faith

Prior to my getting this revelation about the concept of faith from the Lord, I spent countless hours focusing on my problems, which appeared enormous at the time. I concentrated on everything that was wrong in my life and was constantly searching for ways in which I could improve my situation. I seemed to have the “world” on my shoulders and it was an enormous burden to carry. As my focus was in the wrong place, I couldn’t appreciate that actually I had many blessings that I should have been thanking the Lord for. Things that, at times, we take for granted such as good health, peace in the household, happy children and so forth. I spent a lot of time focusing on the perceived deficiencies in my life and then finding new things to worry about every day. Because of this approach I literally had no time left to truly follow the Lord or to focus on Him. And here’s the rub. Had I diverted my focus to the Lord, all the problems I was experiencing would have been dealt with and resolved far sooner than they ultimately were. It really is as simple as that.

So what is meant by the phrase, “Follow the Lord”? I know many Christians who have been regularly turning up for church every Sunday for the last thirty years but are still not really “following” the Lord. They’re trying to do so, mainly on Sundays, but they are not succeeding. Why? Because their focus is in the wrong place. Their focus tends to be on trivialities such as gossip and petty politics and all manner of other things which essentially diverts their attention away from the Lord. To truly follow the Lord requires determination. You have to make a conscious decision to hand over the control of your life to almighty God. You have to place Him at the very centre of your life. If you’re focussed on the Lord, He’s involved in every aspect of your life, big or small, important or unimportant, major or minor. “Yes, but what does this really mean?” I hear you ask. It means that you simply hand the mantle over to the Lord, and let Him be the guide of your life. Dr Charles Stanley (www.intouch.org) has a wonderful way of putting it: “Follow the Lord and leave the consequences to Him.”

To follow the Lord requires you to have an intense, intimate, and personal relationship with Him. This also means shifting your entire focus to Him and Him alone. You take your relationship with the Lord very seriously and do not make any decisions in isolation of Him, no matter what that those decisions may be. He’s placed squarely at the centre of your daily life. You start to spend more time with Him in prayer and you have a general awareness that He is here, right beside you all of the time. You will find that as you increase the time you spend with the Lord, the everyday worries and issues in your life become less significant. In fact you start looking for ways that you can please Him, instead of worrying about your circumstances. The beauty of this approach is that as soon as you start to try and please Him, you are really opening a door for Him to bless you.

One way of pleasing the Lord is by simply opening your Bible and reading His words.
When I first started on my journey of faith, I had a burning desire to read the Bible from cover to cover and in order. I didn’t think it would be right for me to leave this earth without having done so, so I started to change the way I read the Bible. Previously, I’d only dipped into the Word, hoping the Lord would throw me some comfort through His scriptures or send me a message confirming what I should or should not do in a given situation. To some extent, this approach worked very well, as often the Lord spoke to me through the Word and provided answers to my problems. However when I changed the way I read and decided to read a few chapters, starting with Genesis, in order every day, as well as continuing to dip into the Word and read whatever chapter the Bible landed on, I began to receive revelation after revelation. I believe that because I was investing that time in my relationship with the Lord, He was rewarding me by communicating the understanding and interpretation of the Scriptures to me. He was able to guide my thinking in respect to my own circumstances and provide the solutions I sought. It resulted in a period of immense elucidation, illumination, and understanding. I couldn’t get enough of the Scriptures and felt His hand begin to guide me through the complex maze of life. I suddenly began to find solutions to problems which had dogged me for years. It was as though the scales had been lifted from my eyes, and I could see clearly for the first time in many years.

It saddens me to think that some people have never read a single line of the Bible, it’s as though they have been short-changed in their lives. They feel afraid of the Scriptures and yet if only they would have a peek, they too would receive comfort and revelation from the word of God. I know people whom are going through a crisis right now and wouldn’t even consider opening the Bible and perhaps reading a verse of Psalms in the depth of their despair. Indeed, it wouldn’t even occur to them to do so. I was thinking about this a couple of years ago after I had been through an intense period of tribulation and experienced a little “wobble” in my faith. I was on a specific journey which did not pan out the way I’d expected and although I still loved the Lord and was trying to serve Him, at the time I was not a church attendee (a tree without roots) and felt very alone in my specific situation. I felt as though I had nowhere to turn and was bereft of help, yet I’d always possessed a Bible which sat on my bedside cabinet. One day I was pondering my situation and the struggle I was in and I felt that the Bible was literally looking at me, trying to entice me to open it. Yet in my heart I didn’t have the strength to do so. I was hurting so deep inside and wanted the pain to be gone, and although I knew instinctively the answer was in the Bible, I just couldn’t bring myself to open it. I wrote this poem in that moment and I want to share it with you:

So Why Is It your Bible remains shut?

So why is it your Bible remains shut?
Are you in the midst of a trial or tribulation?
Do you not think the words therein will take you through?
Or is your heart too laden to read the verses that will surely help you?

I will lift up mine eyes to the hills from whence cometh my help. My help cometh from the Lord who made Heaven and Earth (Psalm 121: 1-2).

So why is it your Bible remains shut?
Have you been praying without ceasing yet nothing has changed?
Do you not know that the Lord WILL answer your prayers
And they are NOT in vain?

For I know the thoughts that I think toward you saith the Lord thoughts of peace and not of evil to give you an unexpected end. Then shall ye call upon me and you shall go and pray unto me and I will hearken unto you (Jeremiah 29: 11-12).

So why is it your Bible remains shut?
Has the prognosis been given and there is no way out?
Is your mind full of fear emptiness and doubt?

I shall not die but live and declare the works of the Lord (Psalms 118: 17).

So why is it your Bible remains shut?
Perhaps you are tired of waiting for your breakthrough
Do you believe the Lord has forgotten about you?

Those who wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength. They shall mount up with wings as eagles. They shall run and not be weary and they shall walk and not faint
(Isaiah 40: 31).

So why is it your Bible remains shut?
Are your debts like a burden which you cannot bear?
Are you beginning to question whether the Lord is really there?

But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus (Phillipians 4: 19).