Living By Faith

I care not today what the morrow may bring,
If shadow or sunshine or rain,
The Lord I know ruleth o’er everything,
And all of my worries are vain.

Chorus:
Living by faith in Jesus above,
Trusting, confiding in His great love;
From all harm safe in His sheltering arm,
I’m living by faith and feel no alarm.

Though tempests may blow and the storm clouds arise,
Obscuring the brightness of life,
I’m never alarmed at the overcast skies—
The Master looks on at the strife.

I know that He safely will carry me through,
No matter what evils betide;
Why should I then care though the tempest may blow,
If Jesus walks close to my side.

Our Lord will return for His loved ones some day,
Our troubles will then all be o’er;
The Master so gently will lead us away,
Beyond that blest heavenly shore.

This particular hymn is another Red-back hymnal favorite of mine. I love the statement that the author makes about how he is facing the challenges in life. He states confidently that he is living by faith. It reminds me of the many verses in Hebrews 11 where we see the “Faith Hall of Fame.” The Bible reminds us repeatedly of what people like Abraham, Moses, Noah, Isaac, Jacob, and Rahab did – They accomplished what they did “by faith.”

I wondered, though, if there are some other ways we as Christians might be going about living our lives instead of living by faith:

• Living by facts – This is the mindset that deals with reality – “Just the facts Ma’am” as you used to hear on the old Dragnet show. In some situations living by facts can be good. But living by facts 100% of the time will eventually result in a lack of trust in God. For Moses, the fact was that he was an old man. The fact was that he was a murderer. The fact was that he had some type of speech impediment. The fact was that Pharoah was the most powerful leader in the known world. If Moses lived by facts and facts alone, he never could have been used by God and could never had led the Hebrews out of Egypt. Hebrews 11:24-28 says “By faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be known as the son of Pharaoh’s daughter. He chose to be mistreated along with the people of God rather than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a short time. He regarded disgrace for the sake of Christ as of greater value than the treasures of Egypt, because he was looking ahead to his reward. By faith he left Egypt, not fearing the king’s anger; he persevered because he saw him who is invisible. By faith he kept the Passover and the sprinkling of blood, so that the destroyer of the firstborn would not touch the firstborn of Israel.” Moses lived by faith.
• Living by fear – This is what I call the “worst case scenario” mindset. It is the mindset that says “Behind every cloud is….another cloud.” This mindset fears the worst in every situation. When one is living in this kind of mindset, fear tends to paralyze them. The Bible reminds us numerous times “Do not fear” or “Do not be afraid.” God is calling us, and commanding us, to trust Him. To trust that He is bigger than sickness and circumstances. To trust that He can and will say “Peace be still” in the midst of our storm.
• Living by finances – There are two kinds of mindsets, in my opinion, that illustrate a “Living by finances” attitude. The first attitude that illustrates this is the person that is so focused on money and things that their happiness is dependent on how many things they have. Life is good when there’s lots of possessions, and life is bad when I don’t have what I want. The second “living by finances” mindset is the one that says “As long as I have X amount of money in the bank, I will be okay.” This type of person relegates God to emergencies only because they have an “Emergency Fund” for every type of situation that might come into their life. They trust that their job will produce the necessary income to keep them safe and secure, or that their savings account will give them plenty of cushion to not have to worry about any financial problems whatsoever. They think that money in the bank provides security, but we all know that it does not.

“In Case of Emergency” – I am sure you have seen that phrase before. Maybe on a Fire alarm in a public building. Maybe next to a fire hose behind glass in an downtown skyscraper. Emergency and Alarm are two words that tend to go hand in hand. When there is an emergency, someone is typically sounding an alarm. If someone breaks into a building (an emergency), an alarm sounds. If someone has been in a serious car accident (another emergency), the ambulance sounds its alarm to let people know “Get out of my way, I’ve got an emergency.”

In the chorus of this hymn, the author writes “I feel no alarm.” The question that came to my mind was, “Does the author feel no alarm because there is no emergency?” Or “Does he feel no alarm because there is no fear?” Is it possible to be in the midst of an emergency and feel no alarm? Although I will admit, I don’t always practice this mindset, I do believe that people can have the faith (the confidence in God) that says “No matter the situation, I know God is in control and I am not afraid.” I believe one can be in the midst of a fiery furnace or a raging storm, and confidently say “I feel no alarm.” I think the Bible gives us examples of this kind of faith throughout Scripture. Living by faith is not necessarily easy. It doesn’t come naturally. But it is achievable and something worth striving for in our personal walks.

So ask yourself today – How am I living my life? By faith, by fear, by facts, by finances, or by a combination of all of them. Hebrews reminds us that “Without faith, it is impossible to please God.” Do you want to please God? If so, I encourage you today to live by faith.