Developing Faithfulness

There is something so incredibly mind-blowing about the Word of God!  Everything;  every situation, every care, concern, feeling, fear, doubt, every praise, every need, everything we could ever face in this span of time here on earth is covered in the Word of God.  It is an endless well; a resource for life.  No matter what I face or think about, it is covered in God's Word.  It is all covered in Christ, who is The Word!    I studied, at one time, the names of God, and I wish I had that workbook in front of me now, because I am in a place in my life where, once again, God is enabling me to experientially know Him.   I use the word experientially  because it goes deeper than words on a page.  Have you ever read a Bio on someone?  You can gather information on that person, find out a little bit about who they are; what their interests are, if they are married or single, kids and the like, but it is a far cry from knowing them personally.  I believe it is the desire of God for each one of us to know Him personally and experientially.  The longer I live, the better acquainted I become with the Person and Diety of God.  It is not a passive thing--rather, like all relationships, it requires time and attention to grow and flourish.  But what about this is experiential?, you ask.  Let's explore...

The Bible is full of stories of faithful people.  They are the "great cloud of witnesses" from whose lives we can be taught and encouraged.  I love the story of Abraham.  He truly was a man of great Faith!  As I read the story of Abraham, I can't help but see that, like mine, his story is a progression of Faith.  Meaning that God allowed him to get to know Him in a deeper way with every act of obedience.   God didn't come on the scene and say "go take your son up on the mountain and slay him as a sacrifice to me" on the first day they met!   No.  God allowed, and still allows us, to grow with Him and in Him, disovering His Faithfulness.  He (God) required smaller acts of obedience from Abraham to show Himself worthy of Abraham's trust and utter reliance.  God was faithful and through His faithfulness, taught Abraham to be faithful too!

If you have ever been in a relationship with someone who continuously renegs on his word, or isn't reliable, you know that it is almost impossible to have a relationship with them.  Without trust there can be no relationship.  Trust takes time to build.    On the other hand, when you are in a relationship where there is trust, the love and the bond of intimacy continues to grow.  This is how it is with God!  I love that about the Lord--He humbles Himself so to demonstrate His love and Faithfulness to us, so that we, in turn, can be imitators of His love and faithfulness to others.  He teaches us to trust by being trustworthy!

As we walk with God; reading His Word, praying, seeking His Face, asking for His direction and serving Him, we are getting to know Him more and more through our experiences.  We pray and He hears us and responds.  We go through this trial and that and He reveals Himself to us as our Provider, our Healer, Our Redeemer, Savior, Friend, etc etc., and through those experiences, we develop assurances  of  Who He is.  The Bible says to those who are faithful with the little, more will be given,  and also, to those who are given much, much will be required.   God gives us only that which we can handle.  He is developing Faithfulness in us!