Stand on something!

Hey there.

It's about 1:30 a.m. on the East Coast and all I can think is -God is GREAT! He's never false, never a liar, and never someone who will lead you on and then leave you hanging. I say this now because I am feeling His grace more than ever and recently I recieved something special from God that I was hoping, praying, and standing on a word for. Therefore, I can not just be content with the gift God has given me; I MUST tell you about a fundamental skill that is pivitol to your livelihood as a Christian (and human being for that matter).

First off: If you are not hoping for anything of/from God, your faith is not going to grow. In Hebrews 11:1 Pauls tells us that "faith is the assurance of things hoped for and the evidence of things that appear not." If what Paul says is true- we must exapnd our hope in order to expand our faith. A lot of Christians seems to miss this, or have never been told about this IMPORTANT concept.

Now to the fundamental skill: How to stand on a word from God. I know you're probably thinking, "Why is this so important?" or "How is this going to help me?" Well, let me tell you- Standing on a word is important because it helps us to trust in God on higher levels and to humble ourselves. More than this, it helps us to gain a deeper relationship with God (and perhaps gain upper social class in heaven as Jesus explains in Matthew 18. More about that later). These are things that all of us sons and daughters are typically striving to pursue and if they are not, I pray that the motives of our hearts change.

Let's cut to the chase: 5 steps that will help you stand on a word

1.Hope in something
Hope for a deeper relationship with God. Hope for a better set of friends. Hope for a renewed spirit. Hope for the right guy/girl to come in to your life. Hope for better grades. Hope for a job. Hope for a healed family member. Hope for the kids in foreign countries. Hope for poverty stricken people. Hope for a renewed spirit of God in your community Hope for a place to stay. As you can see, there are many things to hope for- HOPE FOR SOMETHING! Make sure you are expanding your faith in God at all times by hoping for something.

2. Find a scripture in the bible that gives your hope a foundation.
This can be a scripture that represents of a promising result to a problem you might be having or maybe something God says he will provide that you desperately need. One of the most popular scriptures typically used is Isaiah 53, which relates to healing.

3.Pray to God while reminding Him of His word
We do not do this to remind God of what He has said, but we do this to remind ourselves of what He has said. We also do it to show God that WE know the promises and word he has spoken to us. If His word is true, it can appear truthfully in our lives. Amen? Amen.

4.Watch the words that come out of your mouth!
This one is a big one for believers. We have to constantly watch what we speak and make sure that what we say is not hindering our lives. Our mouths have the power to make or break us (Proverbs 13). Therefore, we must make sure that we are not speaking negative situations into existance. Even more than this, we must make sure we are not canceling our very own prayers to God by grumbling about "How things seem impossible" and "How this and that might not happen." The thoughts may go through your mind, but leave them behind.

5.Believe that what you want had already been given to you
I know this sounds like a stretch, but in Mark 11:24 Jesus says, "Anything you ask for in prayer and BELIEVE THAT YOU HAVE RECIEVED IT, it will be yours". Therefore, our hope that God will provide must be confident. A big explanation isn't needed, the Bible speaks for itself.

With these steps- your faith will grow. That's all there is to it. Make sure your hope is growing in the word of God and you will be on your way to getting to know our Daddy better. I hope this helped a lot of you out there, because I know I was struggling with my faith before somebody broke it down for me.