F.A.I.T.H.

     My dad and I were at the grocery store a few days ago, and the cashier made a comment that prompted my dad to mention God's grace.  The cashier immediately brightened and shared the acronym of grace, which I had never heard before.  God's Riches At Christ's Expense.  I thought that was a perfect illustration of God's grace, but what the lady said a second later that really caught my attention was the acronym of faith. Forsaking All, I Trust Him.  Wow.  A perfect picture of faith.  Because faith is grasping what can't be touched, glimpsing what can't be seen, walking the unknown path.  Trusting that the sovereign Lord is in complete control, we climb the rugged mountains of life with God constantly at our side.  That is what faith is all about.  Hebrew 11, of course, is the 'faith chapter' of the Bible.  Consider this verse:

"All these died in faith, without receiving the promises, but having

seen them and having welcomed them from a distance, and 

having confessed that they were strangers and exiles on the earth."

Hebrews 11:13

     The passage had just listed several people who had acted in faith.  But see what the verse says!  They died in faith, without receiving the promises!  They trusted the Lord to the point that they were satisfied to obey without knowing what lay ahead.  Confessing that they were merely strangers longing for the ultimate destination, they were content with seeing the outcome of God's covenant only from a distance.
     Just because we trust and obey the Lord doesn't mean we should expect anything in return.  We don't deserve anything from God, yet we have warped our thinking to believe that there has to always be something in the deal for us.  In fact, God's will often involves some hefty testing of our faith.  When Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego were about to be thrown into the furnace of blazing fire for refusing to worship a false god, Nebuchadnezzar asked them "and what god is there who can deliver you out of my hands?" (Daniel 3:15). Knowing that death was quite near, the three men answered "If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the furnace of blazing fire; and He will deliver us out of your hand, O king.  But even if He does not, let it be known to you, O king, that we are not going to serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up." (Daniel 3:17-18)
     These men possessed such faith in God that they fearlessly submitted to the furnace that they knew would kill them unless God had another plan. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego were willing to stay true to the One who made them even if He did not deliver them from death in the furnace.  What trust they had in the Lord!  If we were in their shoes, would we trust God enough to follow Him until the very end?
     This is the kind of faith that rewards us in eternity.  The fact that the cashier woman at the store enjoys sharing God's truth with customers is, I believe, a testimony to her own zeal for the Lord.  Praise Jesus.

Forsaking All, I Trust Him.