THEME: “TOUGH TIMES NEVER LAST, TOUGH PEOPLE DO”
DAY 7. Read Hebrews 11:33-38
FAITH IS THE ONLY WAY TO LIVE IN THESE TOUGH TIMES
Text: “God is our refuge and strength, always ready to help in times of trouble.” (Psalms 46:1 NLT)
The shield of faith is vital for surviving these tough times. Paul teaches that we must put on the shield of faith to survive in the evil day. The evil day is here with us. Our faith in God and his promises must be unshakable.
Faith is trusting in God and his promises. It is trusting that what God says he can do. We must have faith that God is our Jehovah Rapha, our El Shaddai, our Jehovah Jireh and our Shepherd in this time of COVID-19. We must confess that “God is our refuge and strength, always ready to help in times of trouble” (Psalms 46:1 NLT).
Our fathers in the faith are called heroes of the faith because they walked with God in faith during tough times. They all obtained a good report because of their faith. Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego survived the fiery furnace of fire through faith. Daniel overcame the lions because he had faith in his God. While King Saul and his soldiers lived in fear, David confronted and defeated Goliath because he had faith in God.
It was written of Hezekiah that “he trusted in the LORD God of Israel” and that “he held fast to the LORD” (2 Kings. 18:5-7). Thus, he was able to overcome by dogged faith. Noah lived during a time of great flood because of his faith (Hebrews 11:7). Abraham was called the father of faith because he believed God. Even when God told him to sacrifice his only son, he still believed that God was able to raise Isaac from the dead (Heb.11:8-12,17). By faith, Moses led the children of Israel through the rigors and rough terrain in the wilderness for forty years.
Faith is the only way to live now. The testimony of our fathers is summarized thus: “How much more do I need to say? It would take too long to recount the stories of the faith of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel, and all the prophets. By faith these people overthrew kingdoms, ruled with justice, and received what God had promised them. They shut the mouths of lions, quenched the flames of fire, and escaped death by the edge of the sword. Their weakness was turned to strength. They became strong in battle and put whole armies to flight. Women received their loved ones back again from death. But others were tortured, refusing to turn from God in order to be set free. They placed their hope in a better life after the resurrection. Some were jeered at, and their backs were cut open with whips. Others were chained in prisons. Some died by stoning, some were sawed in half, and others were killed with the sword. Some went about wearing skins of sheep and goats, destitute and oppressed and mistreated. They were too good for this world, wandering over deserts and mountains, hiding in caves and holes in the ground. All these people earned a good reputation because of their faith, yet none of them received all that God had promised” (Hebrews 11:32-39 NLT).
PRAYER: Father, teach us how to live by faith in this season of tough times. Amen.
