WEBVTT 00:00:00.040 --> 00:00:05.000 The fruit of faith in Hebrews 11 1 we find the 00:00:05.000 --> 00:00:08.240 definition of faith Now faith is a substance 00:00:08.240 --> 00:00:11.300 of things hoped for the evidence of things not 00:00:11.300 --> 00:00:14.679 seen Can I just say I'm struggling with this? 00:00:15.300 --> 00:00:19.640 I was hoping that faith meant faithfulness Faithfulness 00:00:19.640 --> 00:00:23.120 like not leaving your post being consistent being 00:00:23.120 --> 00:00:26.989 a faithful spouse student or employee I feel 00:00:26.989 --> 00:00:29.710 like I can check that box more easily than straight 00:00:29.710 --> 00:00:32.770 up faith. I did a word search and read all the 00:00:32.770 --> 00:00:35.670 verses and looked at the definition, and faith 00:00:35.670 --> 00:00:39.689 as a persuasion, being persuaded, believing something 00:00:39.689 --> 00:00:42.710 to be true, according to Strong and the verses 00:00:42.710 --> 00:00:46.969 I've read, not faithfulness as I hoped. I have 00:00:46.969 --> 00:00:50.030 some promises that God has given me, things when 00:00:50.030 --> 00:00:52.810 written on a piece of paper I know God said. 00:00:53.560 --> 00:00:56.000 But when faced with not seeing them, week after 00:00:56.000 --> 00:00:59.100 week and year after year, when the evidence is 00:00:59.100 --> 00:01:02.380 opposite the hope, let's be honest, it's easier 00:01:02.380 --> 00:01:06.140 to be faithful than faith -filled. Faithful in 00:01:06.140 --> 00:01:08.920 the sense of going through the motions, doing 00:01:08.920 --> 00:01:11.980 all the right things, but hope being deferred. 00:01:12.620 --> 00:01:15.799 There is some merit in that, when the apostles 00:01:15.799 --> 00:01:18.840 got to hard things that Jesus said, things that 00:01:18.840 --> 00:01:21.939 left them bewildered. Peter said, we have nowhere 00:01:21.939 --> 00:01:24.560 else to go. We know you have the words of eternal 00:01:24.560 --> 00:01:28.299 life. So there is faithfulness and faith, but 00:01:28.299 --> 00:01:30.379 no one wants to be in a relationship where the 00:01:30.379 --> 00:01:33.239 other is there solely because of duty, but doesn't 00:01:33.239 --> 00:01:36.000 have faith in your ability. God doesn't enjoy 00:01:36.000 --> 00:01:39.319 that kind of relationship either. The fruit of 00:01:39.319 --> 00:01:42.140 faith struggles without consistent water and 00:01:42.140 --> 00:01:47.019 fertilizer. It's easy to sing with the Israelites 00:01:47.019 --> 00:01:49.340 as they see their enemies drowned and floating 00:01:49.340 --> 00:01:53.260 down river. It's easy to sing on Sunday, but 00:01:53.260 --> 00:01:55.560 it's harder to walk three days journey into the 00:01:55.560 --> 00:01:58.659 wilderness and have no water and the water you 00:01:58.659 --> 00:02:02.739 do see is bitter. Three days, a lot can happen 00:02:02.739 --> 00:02:05.579 in three days. You can't even remember what happened 00:02:05.579 --> 00:02:09.340 on Sunday. I'm guilty of this. Speaking faith 00:02:09.340 --> 00:02:12.199 while singing with God's people on Sunday. Thinking 00:02:12.199 --> 00:02:14.979 I'm going to die on Wednesday. Not even just 00:02:14.979 --> 00:02:18.520 me. My family's going to die. My situation won't 00:02:18.520 --> 00:02:21.319 be resolved. The promised thing is outside of 00:02:21.319 --> 00:02:24.199 my view. How will I even get that far if I don't 00:02:24.199 --> 00:02:28.020 have water immediately? I've mentioned my friend 00:02:28.020 --> 00:02:30.219 who reminded me that the fruit of the spirit 00:02:30.219 --> 00:02:33.300 isn't a work we do, but an outgrowth of our walk 00:02:33.300 --> 00:02:36.620 with God. It will grow as the spirit works in 00:02:36.620 --> 00:02:40.000 us. But there's the whole hope -deferred reality, 00:02:40.599 --> 00:02:43.379 that long summer stretch between planting and 00:02:43.379 --> 00:02:47.479 harvesting. We admire Abraham, but he never actually 00:02:47.479 --> 00:02:51.319 saw nations. He went 25 years without a child. 00:02:51.939 --> 00:02:55.120 He was 75 when he was given the promise, 100 00:02:55.120 --> 00:02:58.840 years old when the promise came. Obviously, God 00:02:58.840 --> 00:03:01.139 was teaching us that he was in charge of the 00:03:01.139 --> 00:03:04.580 womb. If he could make an old bared womb bring 00:03:04.580 --> 00:03:08.060 forth life, someday he could cause a virgin's 00:03:08.060 --> 00:03:11.000 womb to bring forth life. God was looking at 00:03:11.000 --> 00:03:14.560 generations. He was looking at me and you. That's 00:03:14.560 --> 00:03:17.199 all well and good thousands of years later, but 00:03:17.199 --> 00:03:21.419 25 years. How do you walk in faith for 25 years? 00:03:21.979 --> 00:03:24.099 We can't even keep our eye on the New Year's 00:03:24.099 --> 00:03:26.939 resolution we started last month. How can we 00:03:26.939 --> 00:03:29.800 keep our eye on the promise? How can we have 00:03:29.800 --> 00:03:33.840 faith over weeks and months and years? The good 00:03:33.840 --> 00:03:36.960 news is, the Bible says Abraham stay or not. 00:03:37.639 --> 00:03:40.539 We look at Abraham and are like, what about Hagar 00:03:40.539 --> 00:03:43.800 and Ishmael? Abraham asked, couldn't you just 00:03:43.800 --> 00:03:47.180 use Ishmael? What about the harem Sarah had to 00:03:47.180 --> 00:03:50.060 go to? What about the fact that one of those 00:03:50.060 --> 00:03:53.080 visits to the harem was after God said, this 00:03:53.080 --> 00:03:56.400 year you will have a son? But the Bible says 00:03:56.400 --> 00:03:59.919 Abraham staggered not. God measures things so 00:03:59.919 --> 00:04:02.719 differently than you and I. He looks so far down 00:04:02.719 --> 00:04:06.099 the road and he's so much more merciful and kind 00:04:06.099 --> 00:04:08.939 than you and I are. He is more merciful than 00:04:08.939 --> 00:04:11.340 we are to others. He's more kind than we are 00:04:11.340 --> 00:04:14.639 to ourselves. He is patient and teaches us to 00:04:14.639 --> 00:04:17.699 walk in faith as he taught the Israelites. He 00:04:17.699 --> 00:04:20.839 tells us to sing to ourselves in spiritual songs 00:04:20.839 --> 00:04:23.720 and hymns. He tells us to pray in the spirit 00:04:23.720 --> 00:04:25.620 because we don't know how to pray as we ought. 00:04:26.139 --> 00:04:28.899 He tells us to meditate the law day and night. 00:04:29.079 --> 00:04:33.000 Speak words of life and not death. He is giving 00:04:33.000 --> 00:04:36.579 us tools. Some might call them ways to cope. 00:04:37.459 --> 00:04:40.060 Let's talk about things that keep your panic 00:04:40.060 --> 00:04:43.040 under control. Here are things that will water 00:04:43.040 --> 00:04:45.839 the seeds of faith and smother the weeds of doubt. 00:04:46.339 --> 00:04:49.680 Here's what has worked for me. Read the Bible. 00:04:49.959 --> 00:04:52.800 Make the time. Wake up earlier. Put down the 00:04:52.800 --> 00:04:56.920 busy for 20 minutes. Be intentional. Turn off 00:04:56.920 --> 00:05:00.740 the noise. Seriously. Turn it all off. Drive 00:05:00.740 --> 00:05:04.000 without music, podcast, or news. Cook without 00:05:04.000 --> 00:05:06.920 something talking in the background. Walk without 00:05:06.920 --> 00:05:10.879 something in your ears. Still yourself. Don't 00:05:10.879 --> 00:05:14.959 speak negativity. Stop. Don't do it. Ask the 00:05:14.959 --> 00:05:19.100 Lord to bridle your tongue. Speak life. If you 00:05:19.100 --> 00:05:21.560 have nothing positive to say, quote a scripture 00:05:21.560 --> 00:05:24.920 or a phrase of faith. Lord, I trust you. Your 00:05:24.920 --> 00:05:28.199 words are true. I praise you Lord. There's no 00:05:28.199 --> 00:05:31.100 magic phrase only declarations of faith that 00:05:31.100 --> 00:05:35.220 work for you. Be faithful. Do what is right. 00:05:35.720 --> 00:05:38.800 Keep going to church. Keep praying. Keep your 00:05:38.800 --> 00:05:42.879 temper. Watch your mouth. Be obedient. Sing. 00:05:43.500 --> 00:05:46.839 Sing the worship song. Sing the old hymn. Sing 00:05:46.839 --> 00:05:51.180 off key. Sing as you cry. Sing in the car. Sing 00:05:51.180 --> 00:05:54.620 even as your kids roll their eyes. Sing because 00:05:54.620 --> 00:05:57.759 your kids roll their eyes. Sing in the night, 00:05:57.939 --> 00:06:01.519 especially in the night. Keep a notebook or a 00:06:01.519 --> 00:06:04.439 list. Keep a list of what the Lord has promised 00:06:04.439 --> 00:06:07.339 and what the Lord has done. I have a physical 00:06:07.339 --> 00:06:09.879 notebook. I have things pinned on my wall. I 00:06:09.879 --> 00:06:12.920 have an album of screenshots labeled promises 00:06:12.920 --> 00:06:16.579 on my phone. Remember what the Lord has done. 00:06:17.000 --> 00:06:20.970 Read that notebook. Read that list. Focus on 00:06:20.970 --> 00:06:24.129 something else. Find someone who needs prayer 00:06:24.129 --> 00:06:27.269 and pray for them. Seek someone to give the gospel. 00:06:27.529 --> 00:06:29.910 Look around. Who is in this place that needs 00:06:29.910 --> 00:06:32.810 something for the Lord? What can you add to those 00:06:32.810 --> 00:06:35.550 around you? Where have you been brought that 00:06:35.550 --> 00:06:38.410 you aren't usually? And identify those new people 00:06:38.410 --> 00:06:40.550 that come with that place to whom you can speak 00:06:40.550 --> 00:06:44.970 life. Praise the Lord for the situation. Really. 00:06:45.709 --> 00:06:48.509 Thank him for the season of growth. Thank God 00:06:48.509 --> 00:06:50.389 for what he's teaching the person you're worried 00:06:50.389 --> 00:06:53.410 about. Thank him for bringing you to the place 00:06:53.410 --> 00:06:55.910 that you can't handle so he can show himself 00:06:55.910 --> 00:07:00.410 strong. Be very profuse in your praise. I have 00:07:00.410 --> 00:07:02.990 found these things helpful. If you encourage 00:07:02.990 --> 00:07:05.569 yourself in another way, let me know. I'm always 00:07:05.569 --> 00:07:07.750 looking for more tools to add to my toolbox. 00:07:08.689 --> 00:07:11.209 May your fruit of faith grow. Don't forget to 00:07:11.209 --> 00:07:14.209 keep it watered. Next time, we'll talk about 00:07:14.209 --> 00:07:14.769 meekness.