Devotional: "Marco?"........................"Polo!"

Has it ever felt to you like God is far away? You call out for him, but it seems like there's no answer? You pray for things, but never see any results of those prayers? Hebrews 11:1 defines faith as being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. Now if you highlight those words "do not see", there lies the problem with our faith. We often expect to "see" things happen in our faith, and yet that isn't always how it works. When we don't see what's going on, our faith tends to lack. Here is a good way to look at it though. Mark 4:26-27 says, "He also said, 'This is what the kingdom of God is like. A man scatters seen on the ground. Night and day, whether he sleeps or gets up, the seed sprouts and grows, though he does not know how.' " Though we may not see every stage of a plant's growth, that doesn't mean it doesn't grow. When we pray, even though we don't see how God works in answering our prayers, that doesn't mean he's not answering them.

I know many of you have heard the expression "childlike faith". There is a reason why it's called childlike faith. My dad was once giving a teaching on faith and asked one of the younger boys in church to come up front. When the boy came up front, my dad asked him, "Do you lay awake at night worrying about what you will eat the next day?" The boy looked confused. "No," he said. So my dad asked, "Do you worry about how you are going to pay the bills?" Then the boy replied, "My mom and dad take care of that." Boy, wouldn't it be great to have that kind of faith? To wake up each morning knowing that someone else has everything covered? The reason why it's called childlike faith is because it's innocent and trusting and hasn't been tainted. 1 Peter 1:5 says, "...who through faith are shielded by God's power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time." God will help shield your faith through any difficult circumstance, big or small. Though most of us may not have that childlike faith, God will protect what faith we have.

God never promises that there won't be hard times. In fact, God sometimes allows us to go through hard times to make us stronger. James 1:3-4 says, "...because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance." Whether our faith is being tested, or the Devil is trying to make us miserable, God promises to be there through ALL of it. God says in his word, "I will never leave you or forsake you." (Hebrews 13:5) So hold onto God. He will be with you whenever you need him. Faith is a part of everyday life and will be put into action in many different scenarios, and God promises to be there through every one of them. Hebrews 10:23, "Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for God who promised it faithful."