As long as you need man’s approval, God is limited in what He can do through you. Faith is the willingness to look foolish. That’s why faith and humility go hand in hand. Noah looked foolish building an ark in the desert. Sarah looked foolish believing she could conceive at ninety. Moses looked foolish asking Pharaoh to let his slaves go. The Israelite army looked foolish marching round Jericho blowing trumpets. David looked foolish attacking Goliath with a slingshot. The wise men looked foolish following a star. Peter looked foolish stepping out of the boat in the middle of a storm. And Jesus looked foolhardy hanging half naked on the cross.
But the results speak for themselves, don’t they? Noah stayed afloat during the flood. Sarah gave birth to Isaac. Moses delivered Israel out of Egypt. The walls of Jericho came tumbling down. David defeated Goliath. The wise men found the Messiah. Peter walked on water. And Jesus rose from the dead.
There comes a moment when you must quit hedging your bets, quit playing it safe and doing what you’ve always done. You need to build the ark, or at least plant some trees or saw some planks! Faith is acting as if God has already answered our prayers, and acting as if God has answered means acting on our prayers even if, as in the case of Noah, it takes 120 years. Jesus said, ‘Whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours’ (Mark 11:24 NIV 2011 Edition). What has God told you to do? Start doing it!
Micah 4-5, Rev 9
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