Luke 1:45 “Blessed is she who has believed that what the Lord has said to her will be accomplished!”

The Bible is a record of people struggling to believe and trust God enough to obey Him fully. Even in the Garden of Eden, Eve didn’t trust God fully, but fell for the devil’s lie that God was being stingy and didn’t want people to be like Him. (Genesis 3:4-5) The reason God was able to work with Abram and transform him into Abraham was that he believed God. (Genesis 15:6) However, even he had his ups and downs. Hebrews 11 has a grand roll call of people who believed God enough to trust and obey Him, but it ends with pointing out that many such people didn’t see the fulfillment of their faith on this earth. (Hebrews 11:39-40) We get all caught up in the people and things we see physically, when all of those things are temporal. God, on the other hand, is eternal, and He created all that we see and experience. Mary was faced with what we could call an existential challenge. The worst that could happen would be her being stoned to death. She chose to trust God, and all mankind has been blessed immeasurably as a result.

Right now I am working with people who are “faith challenged,” struggling with the idea that God could and would use them for His glory. That tries my faith! I am certainly no better than those listed in Hebrews 11, so I am not to demand that things turn out as I would like on my schedule. However, I am also not to allow others’ small faith diminish mine. The incarnation of God as a human baby is part of the greatest miracle of all eternity. At this time, certainly, I am to ask for the gift of faith for all whom I encounter. I am of course to pray for saving faith for all those who have not yet acknowledged Jesus as Lord, and I am also to pray for overcoming faith for the Christians in my sphere. For many years I have maintained that if Japanese believers ever really wake up to who they are in Christ, they will transform not only this nation but the world. That is still true, which is why the devil fights tooth and nail against it. However, the Holy Spirit is far greater than the devil, so the ultimate outcome is a foregone conclusion. (1 John 4:4) I am to be like Mary, trusting fully that God is going to fulfill what He has said to me, transforming this city to be once again the foremost Christian city in the nation, for His glory.

Father, thank You for all that You allow me to go through to grow, strengthen, and purify my faith. I pray that I would not look on any of Your children as an enemy, but come fully against the devil who deceives them, clouding their eyes. May we all grow together as You intend, both growing simultaneously and growing in unity, to the full measure of Christ Jesus Himself, (Ephesians 4:13) for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!