Faith – What It Is and Why You Need It – Part One
Have you ever felt desperate?
Have you ever needed God to do something, and needed Him to do it quickly?
We’ve all been there at some point—in a situation where faith has to produce, where God has to show up.
Several years ago, I knew a family who hit a deer and totaled one of their two cars. Then, two weeks later, the other car had the engine blow. That’s not a good place to be, right?
They decided that they were going to believe God not to use debt to replace those vehicles. But the clock was ticking. They had a rental car, but it wouldn’t be for long.
The day before the rental car had to be turned in, they got a phone call from a friend who didn’t know what had happened. That friend wanted to know if they knew of anyone who needed a car. When they explained what had happened to them, the friend gave them the car.
That encouraged them, so they decided to believe God for a van that would fit their entire family. They really wanted a Honda Odyssey, so they came into agreement as a family and released their faith for it. A few weeks after that, we stopped by their house and on their refrigerator was a big picture of a Honda Odyssey. Each time they opened the refrigerator they would lay their hands on that picture and thank God for that van.
About a week later, my secretary called me and said, “We had an unusual call this morning. Someone called and said they want to give the church a van.”
Now, she didn’t know what this family was believing God for, so I asked her, “What kind of van is it?”
And, you can guess the rest of the story. That van was actually in really good condition. When my wife called the woman to share the news, she first asked her how they were doing with the car situation. The woman said, “We’re one day closer.”
Now, I don’t believe that was a coincidence. I know better.
I’ve experienced the promises of God, and heard too many stories of the Kingdom operating in people’s lives.
In fact, I believe that it’s critical that every believer learns how the Kingdom of God operates.
What does that mean?
Look at Luke 8:43.
Here we read about a woman who was healed after touching Jesus’ cloak. This story illustrates a vital part of how the Kingdom of God operates. Jesus called the woman “daughter.” That meant she had a legal right to the covenant —she had a legal right to be healed.
It wasn’t Jesus’ faith that caused her to be healed; it was her faith that caused her to be healed.
She was fully persuaded that God was going to do what He said He was going to do.
That’s faith.
For faith to exist, you must be fully persuaded that God is going to do what He said He would do. You have to get it in your heart. God needs you to be in agreement with heaven, in your heart. You can’t beg hard enough, cry hard enough, fast hard enough, be good enough, or read the Bible more to prove you have faith.
God needs your heart.
Your mind may agree with it, you may be able to quote the Scripture, but what do you believe in your heart? You have to get it in your heart to be fully persuaded.
How? And then what?
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Watch for Part Two of this blog post next week.
The post Faith – What It Is and Why You Need It – Part One appeared first on Gary Keesee Ministries.


