Thursday April 2, 2020 by Donnie O'Fallon
The Psalmist David, in Psalm 133:1 wrote, “Behold how good and how pleasant it is for brothers to dwell together in unity.”
A Unified Faith
As I read that passage today, I thought, that is kind of being done through out America today. Truckers are running tirelessly from distribution centers to get products to the store. Moms and children are handing goodies to the truckers at the market- place to say, thank you. As the shelves are restocked, Senior Adults get to shop the first hour ahead of the crowds. Carnival Cruise line told President Trump, “We can match those big Navy Hospital ships, with fully staffed cruise ships. General Motors and Ford Motor Company said, “hold the lines, we can make ventilators where we making cars starting this week”. Women and children are making home made masks as are some furniture manufactures switching their assembly lines to make masks too. Restaurants, schools, social agencies Center of Hope, and church ministry groups like Packs of Love are pooling resources to feed senior adult and under privileged families and kids in communities across our great nation. Through an army of volunteers old and young, working arm and arm to fulfill the mission and the need at hand, they are working day in and day out until the mission is completed. NBA players and owners alike are saying, “hold the games and the balls, while we write checks to pay the arena staff”. Breweries, in Dallas and other places, are making hand sanitizers out of left over ingrediencies and giving it away. Construction companies are giving masks for the medical staff and Doctors in hospitals and clinics. This was my first thought!
My second thought was, “in order to feed our faith, we must starve our doubt”, as I recalled Philippians 4:19, “And my God will supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus”. Our faith, like a muscle, must be exercised to get stronger. It will not grow if it doesn’t get a rigorous work out. My recent knee replacement has taught me that. Like a muscle, our faith must be put under tension and stress.
To strengthen my leg muscles, I had to exercise and after five months now, I’m still exercising and working on strengthening five different muscles in my left leg.
In strengthening our faith, we must practice the Fruits of the Spirit which come as a result of abiding daily in Christ. Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness, and self-control are a by-product of our spending time with Jesus every day. In the days ahead, look for ways you can exercise your faith. Listen less to the hysterical media and more to the Spirit as He interprets the message of the Word of God to your hearts.
PRAYER: “Lord help us always to look to you, the author and the finisher of our faith, for you are our strength, our redeemer, and our provision, Amen”!
