Your Daily Devotional for July 2, 2007

 

July 2,  2007

 

 

Stretch Your Faith

by Dr. Paul Chappell

 

 

"And they commanded the people, saying, When ye see the ark of the covenant of the LORD your God, and the priests the Levites bearing it, then ye shall remove from your place, and go after it. Yet there shall be a space between you and it, about two thousand cubits by measure: come not near unto it, that ye may know the way by which ye must go: for ye have not passed this way heretofore. And Joshua said unto the people, Sanctify yourselves: for tomorrow the LORD will do wonders among you. And Joshua spake unto the priests, saying, Take up the ark of the covenant, and pass over before the people. And they took up the ark of the covenant, and went before the people."

 

Joshua 3:3-6

 

 

Have you ever come to a place in your Christian life where going forward for God required a major step of faith? Many times as we live for God, we will come to a place where we must choose to step out by faith and trust God or remain where we are and miss out on His blessings. These times require a stretching of our faith.

 

As we see in our verses today, the Israelites and Joshua had come to a turning point in their lives. Moses had died and God had appointed Joshua to lead the people. In order to get to the Promised Land, the Israelites would have to cross the Jordan River, which, at this time of the year would have been at its flood stages. Although it was not a big river, it was a very swift river, especially during the flood season.

 

God had commanded the Israelites to step out by faith and pass over the river. He did not tell them why He wanted them to cross the river instead of finding a way around it; He simply told them to trust Him. This was a moment of truth for the Israelites. They had a new leader, a new mission, and a new direction. While they had wandered in the wilderness for forty years, God was now telling them to cross into the Promised Land and claim it for His glory. God wanted the Israelites to stretch their faith.

 

There are times in all of our lives when we must choose to step out by faith and trust God. It may be in the area of finances, a life calling, or in raising a family. God has control of everything in our lives, and He desires for us to trust Him for guidance and strength.

 

We cannot stretch our faith in God if we are not obeying Him. When He asks us to take a step of faith, we must obey His command. Many times we will not be able to see how everything will work out in our lives, but we must trust Him and stretch our faith by obeying Him. When we stretch our faith, our faith will be strengthened and we will learn to trust Him more.

 

In 1893, engineer George Ferris built a machine that bears his name—the Ferris wheel. When it was finished, he invited a newspaper reporter to accompany him and his wife for the inaugural ride. Despite the wind on that July day, the wheel turned flawlessly. After one revolution, Ferris called for the machine to be stopped so that he, his wife, and the reporter could step out. No one would have known the joys of riding this invention had they not had the faith to get on it. Even so, we cannot know the blessings of God until we stretch our faith and trust Him.

 

Is there a step of faith God wants you to take? Let God have control and step out in faith. Ask Him to give you strength and stretch your faith in God by obeying Him today.

 

Daily Bible Reading

Job 22-24 • Acts 11

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