When Not Seeing is Believing
Faith's Enemy
"Sight is the opposite of faith." Matt Neff, CEO Sight & Sound Theatre
Is sight really the opposite of faith?
My ears perked up and my mind took note when I recently heard this bold declaration.
Upon questioning, most of us would probably say fear is the opposite of faith.
Indeed, fear wreaks havoc on our faith.
A quick look at Scripture and we see Paul says...
"For we walk by faith, not by sight." 1 Corinthians 5:7
The author of Hebrews concurs "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for; the evidence of things not seen." (Heb. 11:1)
These verses give credence to Matt's statement.
Upon further prayer, pondering and investigation, my eyes were open to just how much we love to walk by sight, rather than faith, making sight a definitive enemy for our faith.
An oft-quoted proverb in our culture is: "seeing is believing."
In other words, we need to see something before we accept it really exists or occurs.
I, myself, was born in the "Show Me State" - if you want those of us born in Missouri to believe you, you must show us.
Have mercy!
No wonder I sometimes struggle with faith.
Add to this the numerous times we judge God based on our view of the current circumstances circulating in our life rather than on His character and His promises.
Our vision clouds and even opposes our faith.
Examining the Life of Joseph
I want to look at Joseph again this week.
I've often wondered how Joseph kept the faith.
If his eyes were on his circumstances, what he saw would have been devastatingly disappointing.
He had...
No Bible.
No family nearby.
No one to confide in to help him hang onto the promises of God for such a long time.
No Bible.
This singular fact boggles my mind because I am completely dependent on God's Word for living this life - and I'm not a slave or in prison!
If Joseph was to faithfully walk with God, he had no choice but to walk by faith and faith alone.
How did he do it?
Thirteen years drug by from the time he was thrown into a pit by his brothers until he became a ruler in the palace of Egypt.
Thirteen long years with no hope in SIGHT!
The future LOOKED dim.
The future LOOKED hopeless.
Three ways to believe without seeing...
There are three ways we can see Joseph could apply to keep the faith.
First, we know the Lord was with him.
God was with him in Potiphar's house and in prison (Gen 39:2, 21).
Others saw it and I believe Joseph was able to sense and feel the presence of the living God with him.
What comfort he must have drawn from God's presence.
Secondly, he had the stories of his family to draw upon.
His great-grandfather, Abraham, was known for his faith. At the age of 75, Abraham moved his wife and flocks away from the only home he had ever known to a "place the Lord would show him" (Gen 12:1).
Undoubtedly, as a young lad he heard stories of the faith of his family members: Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Joseph, himself, had received dreams from God. Above all, he heard stories of the faithfulness of God, his God.
Thirdly, and possibly the most difficult to enact, Joseph chose to please God with his behavior, despite his dire circumstances. When temptation crept up to his door, he refused to commit "wickedness and sin against God" (Gen. 39:9).
Joseph never let the circumstances in front of his eyes cause him to forget God's ways are higher than our ways.
In all these things, Joseph chose to believe what He knew about God more than he believed his circumstances he saw with his eyes every day.
Don't you know those circumstances were screaming at him, yet he ignored the "voice" of what he could see and chose instead to believe the voice of the God he could not see with his physical eyes.
He believed without seeing.
Making it personal...
Possibly, you are also in the middle of a long set of circumstances in which you see no end.
If all you "see" is fear, trouble, and hopelessness, then I encourage you to fight this enemy of your faith.
Fight what you see with your eyes and put your faith in the God we can trust and believe.
How?
We can follow Joseph's plan.
Stop and look for God's presence in your life. If you are struggling to sense He is with you, you can pour out your heart to Him in prayer (Ps 62:8). Time in the Word of God will help you remember He is with you - even if you don't feel Him.
Remember the times of God's faithfulness to you and to others. If you can't think of any, go to the Bible. Numerous stories of God's faithfulness are recorded to build up our faith.
Choose to please God with your daily actions even when frustrated, angry or disappointed with the circumstances you can see.
We walk by faith, not by sight. If we could see it, we wouldn't need faith.
Sight is the opposite of faith. Circumstances scream at us, but faith looks at the goodness and power of God.
Not seeing is believing.
As we turn our eyes away from what we see in the natural, we can focus our faith in the God we know to be loving, good, faithful, and powerful.
I'll leave you with a children's song for encouragement today.
Jesus encouraged us to become like children in heart.
I pray God reminds you of Who He is as you listen...
You Know Better Than I
Many blessings,
Kathy Ann
Thank you for the "How To" in this blog Kathy. It has been a tough season here in Southwest Florida and something as simple as "How To's" has gotten me through. The "How To" follow Joseph's plan was perfect for me this morning. It's funny how I know these, but when life is crazy, I simply can't remember from minute to minute where my awesome and powerful God is. He's there - faithful as always, I just can't see him because of blinders on my own eyes.