Simple Faith

I enjoy words; I always have. As a kid I would ask my parents what a word meant or how to spell it and, invariably, they told me to look it up in the dictionary. What seemed like a useless and frustrating exercise as a child actually instilled a love of words into my heart and mind by exploring their meaning, their usage, and their power to influence. Even now, thanks to Google, I constantly look up words and topics to find answers to questions that randomly pop into my head.

Lately I have given thought to the name of my blog “Simple Faith”. Two words; a simple adjective and noun that describe my spiritual life.

• The dictionary defines “simple” as “not elaborate or artificial”.
• “Faith” is described as “confidence or trust in a person or thing”.

I spent most of my life making the Christian life so complicated with elaborate rules and artificial expectations, setting myself up for disappointment and failure. God assures me again and again that his ways are higher than mine. In Psalm 18:30 he reminds me that “God’s way is perfect. All the LORD’s promises prove true. He is a shield for all who look to him for protection”. (NLT)

Both Billy Graham and Philip Yancey have written statements that resonated with me and reinforce the approach of “Simple Faith”.

Faith is the avenue to salvation. Not intellectual understanding. Not money. Not your works. Just simple faith. How much faith? The faith of a mustard seed, so small you can hardly see it. But if you will put that little faith in the person of Jesus, your life will be changed. He will come with supernatural power into your heart. It can happen to you. – Billy Graham

I am learning that mature faith, which encompasses both simple faith and fidelity, works the opposite of paranoia. It reassembles all the events of life around trust in a loving God. When good things happen, I accept them as gifts from God, worthy of thanksgiving. When bad things happen, I do not take them as necessarily sent by God — I see evidence in the Bible to the contrary — and I find in them no reason to divorce God. Rather, I trust that God can use even those bad things for my benefit. – Philip Yancey

Another important component of my relationship with God is “Trust and Obey”. Three words; two actions words tied together with a conjunction. The conjunction “and” is important because Trust and Obey need each other.

• The dictionary defines “trust” as the “confident expectation of something; hope”.
• “Obey” is described as “to comply with or follow”.

If I truly trust God then I must obey him. Obedience to God comes from my trust in him. As the dictionary stated, trust gives me hope. He may ask things of me that don’t make sense at the time but my hope is in Him and I trust that his ways are best. I love what Psalm 33:18-22 says: “The Lord watches over those who obey him, those who trust in his constant love. He saves them from death; he keeps them alive in times of famine. We put our hope in the Lord; he is our protector and our help. We are glad because of him; we trust in his holy name. May your constant love be with us, Lord, as we put our hope in you.” (GNT)

Henry Blackaby states, “God’s commands are designed to guide you to life’s very best. You will not obey Him, if you do not believe Him and trust Him. You cannot believe Him if you do not love Him. You cannot love Him unless you know Him.”

As a musician I know hundreds of songs but the song I probably learned first as a child has become my favorite in the past few years. It was life changing when I embraced its simple truth: “Jesus Loves Me, This I Know”. He loves me; not just the whole wide world, but he loves me! I sing the song with greater meaning and understanding and sometimes weep at the profound truth it proclaims.

This scripture sums it up perfectly, “But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners.” Romans 5:8 (NLT)

What are the 11 Words That Changed My Life? I’m glad you asked!

Simple Faith ▪ Trust and Obey ▪ Jesus Loves Me This I Know