I don’t know about you, but I want my faith to be real. I want a faith that magnifies God through my life. We make much ado about Christians whose lives reveal the faithfulness and power of God. Impossible odds overcome. Finances supplied in the moment of need. Protection in dire circumstances. We look at these stories and we say, “Wow! Isn’t God amazing.” It boosts our spirits and encourages us. But do we ever dare to hope God’s power might be seen in and through our own lives? And if we dare to hope it, do we step toward it?
Living Faith that Magnifies God:
Requires Beginning Steps
I love to grab a camera and head out for an afternoon of hiking and exploring. I live within driving distance of both mountains and prairies. The landscape is breathtaking. But it doesn’t matter how much I love it. No matter how much I want to see what awaits me — I won’t get there if I never take the first step.
This seems elementary, but when it comes to faith many of us never get this. We want God to magnify Himself in our lives, but we want it to happen sort of magically. Or maybe I should say miraculously. We want a million dollars out of the sky when we haven’t picked up our Bible in a month. This isn’t the way God works.
God works in and through the relationship we have with Him. He wants our relationship to grow and bloom. He isn’t a genie. He’s the Creator of the Universe who chose to live among and in us. He knows us perfectly, but He longs for us to know Him as well.
If we want to see God’s power in our lives, then God and His plans must be part of our daily journey. We must step out, not toward some great feat or accomplishment but toward God Himself.
An Understanding of Who He Is
Several years ago, I stood atop a platform staring down into the crashing waves of the Black Sea. I don’t like heights, and I have a healthy respect of untamed bodies of water. This had me staring into both. On one side of me, stood my fearless Russian friend who found great exhilaration in the moment. On the other side, was an American friend. He calmly reassured me that leaping off of safe, solid ground into the churning depths below was okay.
I took a deep breath and, against my own better judgment, jumped. The air rushed by us. Our feet broke the surface of the water, and we went down into the swirling waves. A moment later, we surfaced and swam to the shore, laughing and splutting and having a grand time.
We came out happy and unscathed, but I wouldn’t have jumped if I hadn’t know something about my American friend. He had served in the Coast Guard. I knew if anything went wrong, I would be in good hands.
This is paramount to living a faith that magnifies God. How can we show who He is if we don’t know who He is? The more we seek to know Him, the more He will reveal of Himself. That revelation starts with His Word. He has told us so much about His character, His strength, and His faithfulness. We learn, for instance that He has promised never to leave us or forsake us. Then when our own trials, tests, or callings come, we can “jump” knowing He’s beside us.
A Willingness to Take Risks
Hudson Taylor and George Muller are two of my favorite Christian heroes. Over and over, God protected and provided for these men. He worked through them to touch countless lives and to inspire future generations to walk in faith. But, we would know nothing of either of these men if they hadn’t been willing to take a risk.
Can you imagine starting a children’s home on nothing but faith? And what could be riskier than a young, British missionary forging his way through inland China in the mid-nineteenth century? How could they take such risks?
They started small.
George Muller had already been trusting God for many, many years before he started his orphanage. This was nothing new to him, but now it would be public — on purpose. Not for the praise of those around him, but to magnify God.
Hudson Taylor started trusting God long before he went to China. An enormous test began in a sick room, where he gave away his last coin to provide for a family in need of a doctor’s care. By the time Hudson left for China, trusting was a way of life.
They had a secret.
These men could set out on their endeavors because they knew God. They had come to know Him through His Word and through their day-to-day lives. When the “big” moments came, their faith was already rooted in that knowledge. The risk was nothing compared to the omniscience, omnipotence, and omnipresence of God.
A Commitment to Follow Through
Once my feet left that platform in Russia, I was committed. No matter what I did at that point, I was going to plunge into the Black Sea. Gravity would see to that. If we want our lives to magnify God, then we must commit to follow through — no matter what the consequences.
Consequences is a big word with big ramifications. I tend to overthink things. I look at the potential end results before making any decision or taking any action. In many areas of life, this is a good thing. It keeps me from making dumb mistakes. But overthinking can be faith’s antagonist.
Once we identify the things that could go wrong, the temptation is to back away. In fact, even though some really awesome benefits could come from the same step, we’re still tempted to run. A life that magnifies not only has to be grounded in Who God is and be willing to take risks but it also has to be committed to following through — no matter what.
Death
And that is why we have to die before we can live. As long as we hold dear our possessions, desires, loved ones, and life, the potential (negative) consequences of an act of faith have the capacity to dissuade us. Jesus said, “Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit.” (John 12:24) If we want to live fruitful Christian lives, lives that magnify God, we must first die to self.
This isn’t a one-time dying, nor is it a dying that we do on our own. The Apostle Paul made this clear. His crucified life was only through the power of Christ and was rooted in who Christ was and what He had done for him. “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.” (Galatians 2:20)
Living faith that magnifies God and reveals His power is possible. But first, we must die.
How about you? Are you ready to die to self, desires, dreams, and comforts? Are you ready to know Him better? Are you willing to take risks? Will you commit to follow through? What step can you take today?