I will share about Christian books I have read or listened to.
I will be sharing about my life before and after Christ. I will include stories about my pet and other pets I have encountered.
Putting Faith Into Practice
Faith is essentially trust, which is a pivotal part of following Jesus.
Hebrews 11:6 says, “Without faith it is impossible to please God..." And Ephesians 2:8 explains, “It is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God.”
So we shouldn’t put too much faith in our own faith, but put our faith in God. Only He can create, save, and sustain. We can't know all things, but we can know Him—who knows all things. Which is why we would be wise to put our trust in Him.
But putting our faith into practice isn’t always easy. The writer of Hebrews tells us that faith begins with having confidence in the things we hope for. More than that, it is having assurance for things we cannot see.
While this sounds like a contradiction, faith actually requires us to believe in something outside of ourselves. If we could see it and measure it, it wouldn’t require faith. For instance, we read in Scripture that God created the earth and everything in it. But we weren’t there when it happened. It requires faith to believe that.
Jesus says that those who believe in Him will inherit eternal life—but that’s a promise that has yet to come. We have to have faith that Jesus will keep His promise, and that one day we will be in heaven with Him.
Faith is the assurance that what God promised will happen. It is the confidence that what Jesus said is actually true. This is why people in Scripture faithfully waited for God to fulfill His promises toward them. Most of them might not have seen that fulfillment in their lifetime, but they had faith that God would still follow through.
Take some time to consider your own faith. Is your faith filled with confident hope? Pray for God to give you the assurance that all of His promises will come true. And as you do that, learn from the stories mentioned in Hebrews 11 on what it means to put faith into practice.
Hope for the Poor in Spirit
Jesus began His famous Sermon on the Mount with an upside-down perspective and eight counter-cultural blessings—commonly known as the beatitudes.
“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”
Matthew 5:3 ESV
To be physically poor is to lack resources or material possessions. The word "poor" might trigger a mental image of someone who can’t pay their bills, can’t break free from the cycle of poverty, or can’t afford food, clothing, or shelter.
So what does it mean to be spiritually poor, and why does Jesus think that’s a good thing?
Those who realize their own spiritual poverty know that, without God, they are spiritually bankrupt. Those who are poor in spirit understand the desperation of their situation—that they can have nothing, do nothing, and be nothing without Him. Those who are poor in spirit recognize that it’s humility, not pride or self-reliance, that’s a ...
