Only Believe

"Only believe.” Such an easy thing to write, but not such an easy thing to do.
Even as I type those words I think, it seems so condescending to write down, “only believe,” when something so simple at times feels almost impossible.

To let go of doubt, to let go of control, to trust God, to believe in His word, to believe in His promises, to believe in what He has spoken over your life, to trust He will bring it to pass, to believe He loves and cares about you. When your life is falling apart, how can I say “Only Believe.”

Because if you believe Jesus is your Lord and savior then:

John 8:32 - “then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” (NIV)

John 8:36 - “So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.” (NIV)

If you only believe,

John 3:16 – “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” (NIV)

John 20:31 – “But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name.”  

Set free, free indeed, have eternal life, have life in His name, these things all sound pretty awesome.

Believe in God, believe He is who He says He is, believe His promises are true, then you can believe and stand strong in those times of trouble. Believe the word of God and what has been put in your heart, what you know in your soul.

Deep down we all want to trust Him, to believe, to have hope. Every human being wants someone to love them, someone to rely on, someone who won’t let you down. God is this someone. Get to know Him, build a relationship with Him. Trust Him. Only Believe.

You might think I don’t understand and don’t know what you are going through and that may be true but what is also true is that I have had my times of trouble, I have had many times when I have wanted to give up, when life has just been too hard, I can’t do it anymore and God just seems to be silent.

What do you do in those times?

You press in, you take a step, you cry out to God and you keep moving forward. You do not give up, give in or bow out!

Trust me, I know it is so hard to do, I have been there, in that dark place, crying out to God, desperate for some answers and it has seemed as though God has left the room. However, in the silence God is still there. Just because God is silent does not mean He is absent. He is there, right beside you and He will come through for you as He has for me.

I would like to say that it has been instant, but the truth is sometimes it hasn’t been. Yes there have been times when God has answered prayer straight away but more often than not, He has answered my prayers His way, and that is quite often different to ‘my way’ or how I expected or wanted Him to answer. I still struggle with God’s timing because it is so different to mine and I like my timing better… well to start off with anyway because I find actually when God moves, it is the right time and way better than when I wanted it done.

Psalm 34:10 …“those who seek the Lord shall not lack any good thing.”

Trust that God knows what is good for you and you will not lack any good thing. What God thinks is good for you, not what you think is good for you, many times these “good things” are quite different. You may think it is good but it also says in His word that things can seem right but they lead to death.

Proverbs 14:12 - “There is a path before each person that seems right, but it ends in death.” (NLT) It may look good to us and seem right but God knows where it ultimately leads.

Proverbs 16:9 – “We can make our plans, but the Lord determines our steps.” (NLT) This is how we need to live, make plans but allow God to determine our steps. Again it comes back to letting go of the control and trusting God.

Isaiah 48:17 – “… I am the Lord your God who teaches you what is good for you and leads you along the paths you should follow.” (NLT) 

Have an intimate relationship with Jesus. Let Him teach you and guide you, so you know which path to take, you know what the right decision is, and you know you can trust in His timing.

If you continue on to the next verse in the above scripture it says: vs 18 - “Oh, that you had listened to my commands! Then you would have had peace flowing like a gentle river and righteousness rolling over you like waves in the sea.”

Don’t we all crave peace? If we live how God is telling us to live, if we do what He is asking we can live with peace flowing like a gentle river, righteousness rolling over you like waves in the sea. All turmoil gone, all indecision washed away, peace reigns. God knows what is good for you, get to know Him so He can lead you along the paths you should follow.

Only believe!