What is faith...?

It really has been a while since the last post. How have you been? I've been trying my best to get used to life as a businesswoman. Working every day from morning to night- learning new things every day, making mistakes, and struggling with relationships, every day. 

It's been 5 months since I started working.

This new lifestyle has been a super challenging one- physically, mentally, and spiritually. Amidst all the newness, the Lord has been faithful to me, continuously and abundantly. I can't get myself to have quiet time every day, and I go to church super tired and weary. But the Lord has been faithful to me. 

Today, I finally got the opportunity to sit quietly (with a latte!) and ponder on the Word of God. By God's grace, I am able to have some alone-time during lunch break at work, so I've been reading the Bible bit by bit at my desk... and it has blessed me through and through. His Words replenish my weary soul and keep me going day by day. 

His words give me purpose, even in the dullness of work. 

Anyway, enough about me. Let's focus on Him! There is a verse that especially strengthened me when my faith was in the woods. When I was so overwhelmed with the world and its worldly thoughts, that I'd lost sight of what it is like to live in God; when I thought my faith seemed to have been blown away by the wind. What even is faith...? What is this thing that felt so dear to me once, but does not seem active in my life anymore...?Well, the Holy Spirit is so kind to me, so gracious, that he let me realize that I really need to return to Him. 

"Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see." (Hebrews 11:1)

... Dear God, please help us learn more about you today. Please let your word become the source of strength and motivation to want to honor you in our lives more and more. In Jesus' name, Amen...

1. HOPE. 

"... Faith is confidence in what we hope for..."

What have you been hoping for, lately? What are your hopes and dreams? 

Until I actually started working, I was so full of hopes for the new beginning, a fresh new start. When I actually started working, however, all my hopes and dreams seemed to be crushed by the reality of society and neverending dullness- making me lose my hopes and dreams. 

I had lost my hope. I had lost my hope that I would live as a testimony of God's love and salvation. I had lost my life's purpose and was so caught up with self-pity and tiredness. 

This verse questioned my "hopes". Am I hoping to serve God with my life, or serve man? Am I hoping to be kind, because I love my neighbors or because I want to make good impressions? Am I hoping to become a living testimony, or to become a cool person? What am I hoping for at this time, at this season in life? What are you hoping for, and are you confident in your hope?

2. CONFIDENCE.

It takes a lot of effort to be confident about stuff for me. I need hours of preparation and practice to have enough confidence to do anything, really. We need strong enough reasons to support ourselves whenever we decide to be confident. What about in our hopes? Are we confident in our hopes? Hope is a strange thing... while it is a beautiful thing, it does also become a source of anxiety and fear, especially when we have less confidence in our hopes. What if I'm not smart enough? What if I screw up? What if I.... I... I... 

When our thoughts center on ourselves, we lose confidence in our hopes... but great news, when our thoughts are centered around God, who is perfect, righteous, holy, and cannot fail, we have all the reasons to be confident in our hopes. 

When our hopes align with God's will, our hopes are fully motivated by unwavering confidence. And that is faith. 

"Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see." (Hebrews 11:1)

3. ASSURANCE

"...faith is...assurance about what we do not see..."

Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine. Oh, what a purchase of glory divine... Blessed assurance, that Jesus is mine. Jesus purchased us with his life and is assuring us even at this moment, of salvation. God's divine glory was displayed to us through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. God's divinity and his absolute glory- displayed through the act of salvation of us sinners. Oh, what a grace. 

How can be sure about salvation? Whether we are truly saved? Is God real? Did God really create the world? Am I really destined to go to hell without salvation? ...there are so many questions. These questions never seem to end, and I honestly don't think we will ever stop having questions. But if you believe that Jesus is God, and is our savior and that there is only one true God, then God will definitely answer these questions. A life of faith is beautiful this way... it's a continuous journey of learning about God everyday. A life of faith is one that brings you closer to Him and lets you experience God's Word through our daily lives. Faith is an assurance about what we don't see. 

4. WHAT WE DON'T SEE

It's so easy to think we see it all. 

Our lives, our day, relationships, society... it's easy to just think we know it all. One thing covid has taught us is that sometimes, things happen that we don't expect coming. When we face things we cannot see, we are terrified. What we don't see might be the virus, the hatred, the suffering, the pain, the sorrow, the pollution, the harmful things in life. The thought of what we do not see terrifies us. 

But please remember, those bad things aren't the only things we don't see. There are so many beautiful things we do not see, like love, kindness, gentleness, affection, forgiveness, humility, repentance, salvation, peace, joy, hope, and above all, GOD. God is worth more than any fear or terror we have. God is so much greater, so much more powerful. God's greatness is so holy and perfect, that it's impossible for us to describe or grasp, ever. Living in faith is living in assurance in what we do not see- our God. 

6. FAITH= CONFIDENCE IN HOPE; ASSURANCE IN WHAT WE DON'T SEE

There are so many times in life when we lose hope and lose confidence in what is left of our hopes. There are times in life when our hearts cling to the fear and anxiety of all the things unseen. 

I pray that amidst all this, we learn to walk in faith. To have confidence in Jesus, our hope. To have confidence in God's will, and learn to pursue his will when we are not sure what it is. To have confidence in God and his plans for us, for our future, and this world. 

I pray that amidst all this, we learn to live in faith. To find assurance in God, whom we cannot see, but are given the mercy of experiencing His Word and ultimate, reckless love. To find assurance in the Holy Spirit, the gospel, the Word, the prayer, the personal relationship between us and God that is all unseen yet absolutely beautiful. 

"Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see." (Hebrews 11:1)

Maybe you are experiencing a difficult patch. Maybe you are losing sight of what it means to walk in faith... and I am in no place to teach you how to live or provide a manual of faithful living. But I can tell you, that God has been so good to me and has blessed me abundantly, and he wants to bless you too. May He alone be glorified, through this journal, and through my life. May He alone be glorified through you. 

"Our Father in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven."