Proverbs 4:21-22 Do not let them (the Words of God) depart from your eyes; Keep them in the midst of your heart; For they are life to those who find them, And health to all their flesh.
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You need to put God’s Word continually before your eyes. Daily, not just once in a while. The devil works daily. Your faith needs to, too.
HOW? Number 1 is to read your Bible. The Bible is God’s Word. It is God speaking to you. It is God teaching you. That’s how you RENEW your mind from your old way of thinking and acting to His ways. (Romans 12:2)
You need Faith to be able to operate in His ways in this world. Faith comes by paying attention to God’s Word (and putting it first place). Faith come by hearing, and hearing comes by the Word of God (the Bible). (Rom 10:17)
Number 2 is to find a good faith-based teacher or pastor. Not all of them teach/preach the whole Bible in faith. Sometimes their opinion or experiences are stronger than His Word. You can find excellent on-line services. A few are listed below.
Number 3 is watching good faith-based podcases (like on YouTube or teaching DVDs). Or find excellent Faith-based books. One pastor (Keith Moore) offers everything for free (teaching, services, books. music) on his website. He even has an excellent Faith School. Short, very educational sessions.
To stay connected to God ways, you have to build up your Faith continually. Growing and strengthening it. Every day you can hear dangerous or fear-based things from news, friends, random people.
People love to share their unscriptural opinions. Those opinions can suck the Faith right out of you if you spend too much time around them or if you don’t know what God says about things.
You can hear how things in the world are going downhill. They say the world is doomed. Fear can overtake you and destroy your Faith just based on newscasters.
BUT IT IS NOT GOING TO HAPPEN TO US IF we stand on the Word of God (Ephesians 6:13). Or if you have Faith in His Word. Example: you can only have Faith for what you know. He promised to take care of you, but if you don’t know that, you won’t believe it – won’t have Faith for it.
You can’t stand (believe it over wrong thinking) on that Word. You won’t believe His Word when someone tells you it is not true – because you don’t know what He says about it in His Word.
What is it to STAND? No matter what’s going on, standing means you choose to believe and confess (repeat) what God says about it. If you pray for something you know He wants you to have (like healing), you STAND on His Word until you get what you’re standing there for.
While standing, if what you feel, see, or hear is contrary to what HE says, choose to STAND on His Word. Stay in His Word about healing to keep growing confident that what He says is true. Don’t be foolish – make sure you know that you know that you know He is your healer. Find scripture to support what you believe. No doubt.
Example: you prayed for a healing for your body. Your body still hurts. What do you do? Choose to believe what God says, not your body. Find a healing scripture (like Isaiah 53:5) and say it out loud, “By His stripes, I AM healed).
That’s how faith comes to be able to stand.
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Some translations:
(Amplified Classic [AMPC}, Complete Jewish Bible [CJB], New International Version [NIV]. (Or if you’re new to the Bible, The Living Bible (TLB) is a good place to start or The Message [MSG] is easy to understand)
Faith-Based Pastors (teachers, too)
Creflo Dollar and his church: World Changers Church
Kenneth Copeland Ministries
Eagle Mountain International Church (Pastor George Pearsons, Kenneth Copeland’s son-in-law)
Keith Moore Ministries
Pastor of Faith Life Church Branson
and Faith Life Church Sarasota