Living by Faith

Read: 2 Corinthians 5:6-9 (NIV)

⁶Therefore we are always confident and know as long as we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord. ⁷We live by faith, not by sight. ⁸We are confident, I say, and would prefer to be away from the body and at home with the Lord. ⁹So we make it our goal to please him, whether we are at home in the body or away from it.

Reflect:

I have read this set of verses many times over the years. For me, they are a small grouping that captures the overall focus of how I need to move through the “every day,” keeping my eyes on the goal — heaven! I am reminded in these verses that while I am moving toward an eternal home in heaven, I am living in a world that challenges my every thought, word, action, hope, and dream, as well as my faith.

As I stare and contemplate the words on the page, my mind narrows down to focus on verse 7, “We live by faith not by sight.” I read those seven words over and over thinking, “Living by sight is easy, too easy! Nothing hard about believing in what you can see and touch.” Our challenge: How do we live by faith, standing firm in beliefs and truths written on the thin, soft, gentle pages of the Bible, in the midst of a world filled with so much that is contrary to the words in red?

I remind myself that my faith matures as I strive to apply what I’ve learned from those words in red. Let me say that living by faith is complex and deep, yet it can also be simply executed at times. Living by faith in a relationship with Christ covers all areas of your life — big and small. It was faith in God’s promise for provision that kept me from panic when, the day before school started, I lost my day care provider. I prayed, “God, I know you love these girls more than I can imagine. We need a babysitter!” For the first time in my “saved” life, I truly believed, without a doubt, God was going to provide. I couldn’t see it, but I could feel it: a peace in my spirit — no panic. Provision came that evening through a friend I did volunteer work with at the elementary school. We were already making plans for the Christmas Tree Shop at school, where the kids buy small homemade gifts to give to family members. During the conversation she asked if we were ready for school the next day. I told her no, I had a problem: I lost my daycare. She quickly responded, “I got a solution; I’ll watch them!” And she did — for the next two years!

Faith in the things that are unseen holds more power than those that are seen. Several years ago during the SCCC “Thrive” campaign, my husband and I felt God leading us to give generously and more abundantly than we ever imagined we would (notice I didn’t say could). We gave our entire nest egg, 20+ years of saving, to the building fund. Faith that God is who He says He is allowed us to have the courage to let go of our self-made safety net and jump into His safety net. Faith let us invest in the unseen and for those who will come after us!

Three years ago, my parent’s house burned down and my dad died in the fire. The first few days felt like a slow-motion nightmare in my head. I said, “God, I feel numb. I can’t think. I want to scream, but yet I feel strangely calm. I know it’s You.” Faith is believing that God IS with us always and will never leave us.

In the midst of a world focused on instant reward and self-gratification, it is easy to connect with what we see all around us. There is power in a decision to live by faith in the unseen. Faith in the Christ we never saw as a baby. Faith in the Christ we didn’t see die on the cross. Faith in God’s promise to those who belong to Him that a heavenly home awaits us!

Act:

Are you living by faith, by sight, by both? In what areas of your life do you need to live more by faith and less by sight? In John 20:29, Jesus tells Thomas, “Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” As we prepare to celebrate Christ’s birth, prepare to be blessed when you live by faith and not by sight!

Pray:

Lord Jesus, help us to remember Your words in red, encouraging us to live by faith and not by sight. Protect us and give us strength to turn away from all the things we see in the world that give temporary satisfaction but an empty reward. Give us what we need daily to stay focused on heaven and Your words in 2 Corinthians 4:18: “So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.” Amen.

Shelley Gregory