2016 – Anchored
Anchored… In Faith

DEVOTIONAL

I don’t know about you, but I find that in my life God often operates in themes.  As we enter 2016, I’d say the theme is faith.  Webster defines faith this way:  “Strong belief in someone or something.”  I’d say Webster only got it partially right.  God’s Word goes into much more vivid detail.  It tells us that faith is the confidence that what we hope for will actually happen.  It is a promise that we don’t need to worry or fret about the “behind the scenes” things we cannot see.  

One of my favorite stories of faith is the story of Noah.  When God told Noah to build the ark, I’m sure that many people doubted him.  There were probably even people who made fun of him, and even questioned his sanity.  Here he was building this giant boat…in a time where they had never seen rain…much less a flood that covered the entire earth!  Experts say this boat was nothing like a toy you see in the bathtub, but very much like one of our modern cruise ships.  That was surely a sight to behold!

A couple of things stand out to me when I think about this story.  First, God trusted Noah completely to do His work because Noah was a righteous man who walked in close fellowship with Him (Genesis 6:9 NLT).  Second, Noah trusted God because of his faith and their covenant (Genesis 6:18 NLT).  The last thing that really stands out to me is that God had already provided all of the solutions, directions, dimensions, and help Noah and his family would need.  Noah consistently listened to the voice of God, and He gave him every detail they would need to ensure their survival, right down to telling them to use tar to waterproof everything inside and out (Genesis 6:14-16 NLT).  I am thankful for Noah’s faith and obedience.  Without them, we wouldn’t be here today!

CALL TO ACTION

Today, take a few minutes and write out three areas where you will increase your faith in 2016.  Maybe it’s your finances, your job, your health, or your family.  Once you have your list, pray over it.  Thank God for all that He is doing in those areas. Thank Him that He already has every detail covered, then let Him bring it to its fullness.  In doing this, I know you will increase the faith of those around you, too.