Faith Walk
Life is full of change. It's inevitable. But in the face of unending variation and constant adjustment, there remains one endeavor that endures--faith. Faith requires hearing from the Lord and acting on what He has said. It's our response to a wooing God--our movement toward obedience, toward relationship. Faith grows in the ground of His word. This side of heaven we wield it imperfectly, but we press on because "without faith it is impossible to please Him" (Hebrews 11:6).
Process, Surrender, Be faithful, and Pay attention. In my faith walk, these four steps seem to play out and overlap over and over again. It's not some exact formula. There's no such thing as "four fast and sure steps to gain God's favor." It's simply listening to the Lord and responding appropriately.
Process, Surrender, Be faithful, and Pay attention.
Photo bt Larimar Lens
Photo by Larimar Lens
Mary, the mother of Jesus, is a beautiful example of a young woman who lived out a similar faith cycle when faced with an unexpected pregnancy--compliments of the Holy Spirit Himself.
Faith grows in the ground of His word.
Her processing was swift. Mary was "very perplexed" and "kept pondering" (Luke 1:29) in order to understand the meaning and implication of Gabriel's message. She asked for an obvious clarification, "How can this be, since I am a virgin" (Luke 1:34)? Mary must have quickly realized and weighed the loss of her reputation and the potential forfeiture of her betrothal to Joseph. She risked distress, dishonor, and abandonment. She courageously laid those concerns aside to embrace God's summons.
Her surrender was staggering. “Behold, the bondslave of the Lord; may it be done to me according to your word" (Luke 1:38). Mary offered her future, her security, her very body for the Lord's design. And she did it unreservedly. Her beautiful praise ("My soul exalts the Lord, And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior..." (Luke 1:46,47)) gives us a glimpse of her joyful consent.
Her faithfulness was steadfast. She did what needed to be done next. At some point Mary informed Joseph and her parents of her pregnancy. She traveled to Elizabeth to offer help, receive comfort, and marvel together at the works of God. Mary labored, gave birth, nurtured, loved, taught. She did what mothers do.
Her attention was sure. She actively pursued and valued an awareness of God's presence and work around her. "But Mary treasured up all these things, pondering them in her heart" (Luke 2:19, ESV). This was her normal. As she noticed, she began to process, which led to more surrender and faithfulness. In short, she walked with God.
We want to walk with God well in every season.
And because Mary walked with God, the world will never be the same.
Of course, our life issues don't carry the drastic implications that Mary shouldered. But like her, we want to be faithful to obediently travel the path the Lord has laid out for us. We want to fully embrace the "good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them" (Ephesians 2:10).
Maybe you have just been blessed with a sweet addition to the family. Perhaps this is your first year to homeschool or you simply need to adapt to a different schedule at work. Are you caring for aging parents? Embracing a new challenge or privilege or responsibility? Change is inevitable. We want to walk with God well in every season.
In faith, let's rise to the occasion and declare with Mary, "Behold, the bondslave of the Lord" (Luke 1:38).
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