[Faith-talk] Daily Thought for Saturday, August 9, 2014

[Paul]

Well folks, as this is being written it's a Saturday in most of the world.  However for you in Australia and New Zealand it's a Sunday morning and time to prepare your hearts and minds to receive what the Lord has in store for you and your fellow congregants as you attend your respective houses of worship.  Anyway I hope that all of you are doing well, by God's matchless grace and His providential care.

Today we have an article written by a "jailbird," Roy A. Borges to be exact, who at the time of this writing was in a state prison in Florida.  The title of his piece is "A Faith That Never Lets Go" and is rendered as follows:

It's hard to have faith when you're sitting in a cell behind the razor-wire fence of a state prison.  The future seems bleak.  Although God is present everywhere, there are times when God seems far away.  Prison life can make you feel alone and doubt that God cares for you.  But I have learned that God is sufficient, and our faith should be based on who God is and not what we feel.

Job had tremendous faith.  In the midst of suffering he trusted God.  He recognized that when everything in his life was gone, God was all he really had.  He declared, "For I know that my Redeemer lives, and that at the last He will stand upon the earth" (Job 19:25).

Job knew from experience that understanding God's purpose in the midst of pain can be difficult.  But God makes no mistakes.  He has a purpose for all the things that happen to us.  No matter how difficult our circumstances, we must continue to trust God when we can't see the outcome.

When God finally spoke to Job, no answers were given.  Instead, God drove home the point that it is better to know God than to know answers.  Job never let go of his faith.  In the end, it saw him through, and God's ultimate purpose came to pass.

In prison, the call to compromise my faith is ubiquitous.  The way other prisoners live can seem attractive, and the urge to join them can be compelling.  How can I keep my faith from faltering?

The apostle Paul told Timothy to "fight the good fight" (1 Tim. 6:12).  While facing death in a Roman prison, he wrote, "I have fought the good fight ... I have kept the faith" (2 Tim. 4:7).  His experience as a prisoner is an encouragement to me.  I too want to keep the faith.

I grew up in the Bronx during a time when you had to learn how to fight to survive.  So fighting is in me, and fighting to keep my faith is a concept I understand.

A good fighter doesn't give up, but fights to the finish.  His single-minded discipline perseveres to the end.  Fighting for my faith means that I spend time in God's Word and in prayer.  I work to fulfill the words Paul wrote:  "Let the same mind be in you that was in Jesus Christ" (Phil. 2:5).  I work to keep my mind on the Lord and what I know God wants me to do--even while in prison.  And I'm sure as Paul the apostle/prisoner said, "I can do all things through Him who strengthens me" (Phil. 4:13).

God is faithful.  I can look back at the past and see what God has done, both in the Bible and in my life.  Because I know that God never changes, I can hope for what may come in the future.

God may not give me all the details of the plan, but this life is not my final destiny.  While I wait I will try to live a life that brings glory to God.

As I continue to grow in the knowledge and grace of my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, my commitment to the fight of faith will remain.  With the psalmist I can say, "with the Lord on my side I do not fear.  What can mortals do to me? (Ps. 118:6).

And there you have Roy's article which, although posted last year for most of you and now repeated for first-timers to read, I trust it was a blessing to you.  Don't forget that tomorrow will be the weekly Bible trivia game.

And now may the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob just keep us safe, individually and collectively, in these last days in which we live.  Lord willing, tomorrow will be the Bible trivia game as mentioned above.  Your Christian friend and brother, Paul