FAITH, HOPE, AND EXPECTATIONS
What is faith? According to the dictionary, faith is the complete trust or confidence in someone or something. My faith is in the Lord and not in my own abilities or any other persons.
1 Corinthians 2:5 (NIV)
5 so that your faith might not rest on human wisdom, but on God’s power.
The very first thing we must do is pay close attention to who and what we put our faith in. It is so easy to say that we put our faith in the Lord but at the first sign of struggle, heartache, or bad news we start believing the worst instead of believing in the Lord’s power. No matter the problem, the truth is that the Lord’s will is what is going to be done. We need to praise the Lord for whatever has been put in our path and thank him for wherever He is leading us. I didn’t say this was an easy task, in fact, it is very hard and goes against human nature. As humans, we want to gripe, to complain, and to say “why me.” I have had many things that have happened in my life that I have not been happy about. I have done my fair share of throwing a pity party and crying on the shoulders of anyone who would listen. One instance comes to mind where something happened to me and I was devastated. I don’t know exactly why but during this situation I was thankful the whole time. I praised the Lord for my troubles. I prayed for those who had wronged me and prayed for their happiness. I asked for guidance and thanked the Lord daily as I felt him changing my heart and my actions. Later, after the storm had died down and the waters were less choppy, someone commented to me that they could see that my faith in the Lord had seen me through this period in my life.
Proverbs 3:5-6
5: Trust in the Lord with all your heart
    and lean not on your own understanding;
6:Â Â in all your ways submit to him,
    and he will make your paths straight.
I love this verse! I especially love the part where it says, lean not on your own understanding. That tells me that I don’t have to know all of the answers. It is alright if I have faith in what the Lord is doing behind the scenes even though I can’t see the path right in front of me. This gives me such confidence that even though my journey might seem like it is having all kinds of ups and downs or curves and patches of seeing nothing happen, the Lord knows exactly where I am going. I recently was flying in an airplane and I loved it when I could look out the window and see the land passing underneath me. I could see that we were going in a straight line and I knew that my destination was in front of me. Then, as we started our descent, we went into a huge amount of clouds. The clouds seemed to last forever and I was blind and couldn’t see where we were going. I had no idea if the ground was getting closer or if the plane was still going toward my destination. Most of us would have faith in the pilot and in the equipment on the plane. We just assume that the pilot knows exactly what he is doing and that the equipment is functioning correctly.
2 Corinthians 5:7
7: For we live by faith, not by sight.
The Lord is my pilot! In Him, I place my faith! His word will never fail me.
Luke 1:37
37: For no word from God will ever fail.
I have no idea what is going on in your life. I usually pray that my Sunday posts will reach someone who is in need. However, I am changing my prayer today and instead I am thanking the Lord because I have faith that He brought you here for a reason. I am thankful that He chose me as the vehicle for you.
Next week I plan on talking about Hope, I hope to see you back.
Have A Blessed Day!
Another of your posts that left me teary eyed. I am in a transition period and leaning heavily on the faith that I am on the path the Lord has laid before me. It gives me great peace to be reminded the He always has a plan and His timing is perfect. Thank you for sharing, Tania.
There is no one better to place your faith in. He will see you through all of your trials.
that was very encouraging, thank you.
I definitely needed to hear this. Thank you.?
I receive this. I live my life walking by faith and not by sight. Thanks for sharing
Thanks so much! Keeping the faith! After spending 9 months with my husband to be receiving chemo I found how important faith is. So many ups and downs, complications, and the unknown has been the scariest time of my life. There were times when I thought what have I gotten myself in to and then God would come even stronger in my heart and help us through it all. Finally in remission and have faith that God put us together for a reason and looking to hopeful healthier times but know He is always with us!!
Faith Faith Faith!! ?
Dear Tania, Thank you so very much for your post on Sunday’s. Proverbs 3:5-6 is also one of my favorite verses. I am in a season of my life were this verse applies. I pray everyday, He is GOD and I am not! May his will be done!
Thank you Tania.
Thank you for sharing your faith as well as your fashion style, love following you on facebook!
Your ability to teach is a true blessing.
Thank you for this beautiful post today. It really was something I needed to hear and be reminded of. You’re a blessing.
I know my reply comes late in the day, but once again I want to say how much your blog does for me. I shared with you some time ago about losing both of my brothers in 3 years to cancer. In the last 10 days my husband lost his dad and his uncle to cancer as well. Simply said, our God and our faith keep is moving forward. Thank you for being you, honest, kind, funny and with a beautiful heart! And most of all, thank you for sharing your faith with us.
Brenda, I remember you telling me about your brothers. It is simply heartbreaking to hear how cancer has touched your family in so many ways. I can’t imagine going through what you and your husband have been through without the Lord be your side. I am so thankful that you have Him to lean on during these terrible times.
Thank you so much. A reminder to me that God works in so many different ways.
Leaving it to Him is my biggest struggle. Thank you for sharing this.
Your words have been both a blessing and a reminder. Thank you.
Thank you for this reminder, Tania! I love your Sunday posts! They are always timely!
Thank you for this Sunday post. I really needed to hear this today and trust in the Lord. Thank you Tania and have a Blessed Sunday?
This is what I needed to hear today. Thank you for your faithfulness in sharing these Sunday posts.
Thank you for reminding me that faith is more than words…its believing even when you cant see the next step.
Believing when you can’t see the next step is hard. Once you put your faith in the Lord it makes it much easier.
Thank you for your weekly inspiration.
Thank you for your words. Last week was my last week before going back to school as a teacher. I had so many plans of things to get done before school started. The Lord had other plans. I was in the ER on Wednesday with back pains and slept most of Wed and Thurs. I was back in the ER yesterday morning and had gallbladder surgery last night. I will recover just fine and be able to work this week while it is mostly meetings and training. He knew that I just needed to slow down and rest and the rest will take care of itself. Thank you for the right verses at the right time. God Bless
Lillian, I am glad to hear that you are alright and that the surgery went well. The Lord does have a way of getting us to do His bidding, even when we don’t listen.
I love your Sunday posts!
Thank you so much for your posting today! I’ve hit a rough patch and your reminder to put my faith in God was just what I needed! You are a blessing!
Margaret, the rough patches are hard. It does make them easier to endure when you remember that the Lord has a destination in mind, even if you cannot see it.
Tanya, you reached me today. Thank you for being God’s mouthpiece!
Dana, I am so thankful that the Lord has given me the great honor of using me. It truly means a lot to me that you needed this.
Love your Sunday posts!
Thanks so much, Ramona.
Thank you for taking the time to reach out.
I always enjoy your Sunday posts.
I am so glad that you enjoy the Sunday posts, Connie!
Thank you for reminding me!
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thank you again for talking about what really is important in life.
Julie, all of us have a tendency to let life get out of control. Putting our faith in the Lord and in His ways can let you breathe easier.
Thank you! I needed that today!!
Sweet lesson on this Sunday morning. Thank you! God’s promises are so precious.
Leisa, I need it too!
Me too and many thanks for your reminders. Your blog is wonderful and you always hit the mark on Sundays. Thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts with your readers..