July 25, 2013 … Faith Living in our Work

Daily Berry Patch Devotions in 2013 - Day 206

Devotional Song: Go to this link   … If you’re reading here with me, please take the time to use this link and hear a song sung by the group The Gettys, singing “By Faith”, showing us – as Christians – that a life lived by faith honors and glorifies our God.

 Highlight Passage of the Day: Hebrews 11: 1 [Is our work reflecting our own planning or is it reflecting our faith in God?] … [NLT] …
1 What is faith? It is the confident assurance that what we hope for is going to happen. It is the evidence of things we cannot yet see. 2 God gave His approval to people in days of old because of their faith. 3 By faith we understand that the entire universe was formed at God’s command, that what we now see did not come from anything that can be seen.

 Highlight Passage of the Day #2: Hebrews 11: 6 [God’s reward is always there for the faithful.] … [NLT] …  
6 And it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to Him must believe that God exists and that He rewards those who sincerely seek Him.
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 Contextual Study involving today’s passage found in Hebrews, Chapter 11 … Go to this link  … 
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Reference Passage of the Day #1: Proverbs 3: 5-6 [God will always lead those who faithfully desire to follow Him.] … [NLT] …  
5 Trust in the LORD with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. 6 Seek His will in all you do, and He will show you which path to take.

My Journal for Today: Pop quiz; … if you, fellow Christian, had to go to one book in the Bible which helped you – or anyone – define and illustrate the concept of FAITH in God, where would you lead someone in Scripture? BINGO!! It would be Hebrews, Chapter 11, wouldn’t it?

Yes, Chapter 11 of Hebrews, that chapter of God’s word, written by an unknown but Spirit-anointed author, we know of as the “Hall of Faith,” because the explanation of the concept of “faith” is illustrated by a description – by name – of the great figures of faith in history and how they lived for God. But the chapter begins with a rhetorical question where “FAITH” is defined for any seeker who is looking to find a living definition for our faith; and that definition is found Hebrews 11: 1, my highlight versed for today. And it is my hope that we all have memorized this definition and that we are living it out in our lives … every day. That’s what the song I’ve linked you to today above proclaims; … that we only really can really live out our God-directed purpose in life when we live by faith.

So, that brings us to the application quiz for the day, where Os Hillman, and now Bill Berry, is asking … Can a life lived for self, and not from faith in God, be a purpose-driven life? 
… OR …
If we’re not driven in life to live by faith, does what we do honor God?
And your answer to both of these is a cold-core negative, isn’t it? That’s what Hebrews, Chapter 11 strives to show in answering the question “What is faith,” … illustrating the answer by showing how real believers lived out their faith with lives which gave honor to God.

So, I don’t think it takes a rocket-scientist or one with a Ph.D. in theology to see the application of the scriptures and the song I’ve meditated upon and shared with you above. And just like you are very likely doing right now, I’m asking myself if the life I’m living is a faith-based life which honors my God … or … am I living a life to honor myself rather than my Lord? I’ll leave it to you to ask those questions for yourself.

My Prayer for Today … Lord, I pray that what I will do today reflects a genuine belief in what You will do through me to glorify You. Help me to live by the faith You give to me. … Amen