Reading notes - week 78 - Walking by faith


For we walk by faith and not by sight 2 Corinthians 5:7.
Hallelujah for this verse!  If I look at myself and my circumstances, I am discouraged and defeated.  It just doesn't seem like I am making much "progress"....But when I walk by grace through faith – the same way I trusted Him for salvation – my walk is established and abundant.
Practically, how do we walk by faith?  Well, first let’s look at what it means to walk by sight.  Walking by sight means that I am governed by my emotions (or hormones!) or my circumstances.  To walk by faith is the antithesis of that – my behavior is not dictated by what I feel like nor what is happening around me.  Instead, I obey what His Word tells me to do…I am controlled – empowered – by His Spirit within me.  The life of faith is one of obedience.  To Him.
Trust – be confident – that He is at work within you, perfecting you, at work around you to accomplish His plan.  He wants us to be whole even more than we want it for ourselves!  (Philippians 1:6, Romans 8:25-30)
What is He speaking to you about today?  When you quiet your heart before Him, what is He telling you to do?  To share a good word with a neighbor?  To forgive someone who has wronged you? To give generously? To cease from a certain activity, even if it’s not a sinful one? To reconcile with a family member or a friend?
It seems counterintuitive but when we walk by sight, we are unsteady, weak, uncertain and easily thrown off course.  But when we walk by faith, we are sure, confident, strong, and effective.
Close today by reading Colossians 2:6,7 and ask the Lord to help you walk by faith and not by sight.  Then believe Him when He says He will do just that!