Most Wonderful Savior, I want to know You better so I can deepen my faith. I do not want my faith to come second hand through the experiences of others. I want it to come from my own direct encounters with You. In seeking a deeper relationship, I believe my faith will be perfected and I will gain clarity over the matters You want me to know. I believe it will take courage on my part to step out and become a doer of Your Word. As I go through Your lessons using faith to solve them, faith will become my own and a part of who I am. I can learn about faith from others, from teachers, from ministers and from loved ones. But after this initial exposure to faith, I need some direct experiences that will make it my own. In time spent with You, I know You will show me the ways You prefer me to use in dealing with events in my life. When I start to act on messages You send me, I will know my faith is my own.
I have come to realize that faith is a spiritual muscle. It draws its strength from two sources: You and the trials I face. You because, as I learn to rely on You more, Your power replaces my weaknesses and shortcomings. My trials act like barbells strengthening my faith. The more I’m asked to face, the stronger my faith muscle becomes. And, as a backup, You have assured me that I will never be tested beyond what I can handle. In addition to growing my faith, there are virtues that emanate from faith. Like patience, which gives ballast to my life as I weather the storms I face or I wait for an answer to a prayer. Patience helps me hang on until I see the fulfillment of what I believed. Perseverance is another virtue that You esteem which comes from faith. It acts as armor helping me resist the pressures and stress brought on while fighting the “good fight of faith.”
My faith in You is borne out of trust. As I learn to trust You more, I believe that my faith will grow larger. I ask myself … how, then, do I cultivate more faith? The answer lies in the Scripture which tell me “faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God.” Sometimes I am unmoved by what You are saying. I hear it, but it doesn’t sink in because the Devil makes me believe it wasn’t meant for me. You give life and meaning to my existence when I open myself to receive Your words. If I truly want to hear You when You speak, I need to go to Your Word and search for the things You have to share with me. In the book of Hebrews, I am told Your Word is living and active … able to separate truth from fiction … so I can lead a successful life. Help me grow in my faith in You. And it’s in Jesus’ name I pray. AMEN!!
Mark 4:20 Others, like seed sown on good soil, hear the Word, accept it and produce a crop – 30, 60 or even 100 times what was sown.