Faith

[sami2010]

I've always had very little faith, but I know God is pleased that I have that little faith than none at all. I have conversations with Him sometimes, as in I talk out loud to him. I talk to Him about my fears, how I constantly keep on messing up and I hope I'm not punished for my mistakes that I keep on making to this day. I Pray to Him, talk to Him, and even I cry to Him. I Just want to feel His love...feel His presence.

I'm not a selfish person, I pray for others more than myself. I pray for my family and the health of the people closest to me. I want to be a survivor for my kids, be around for them...thats my biggest thing.

I know this isn't a question, I'm just saying...I just need prayer for my health and my family. Prayer changes things but sometimes I think I don't pray enough. I try to pray every night. I just need support from everyone who has just as much faith or even more than me. I want to be strong...

[acker]

god delights in you; he delights in us all

[cfstorey]

April - that was amazing. Thank you for saying all of that not only for Sami, but for everyone.

Sami- Iisten to April's words please. They ring true and clear. My greatest faults sound like yours too. I start to doubt my prayers. Did i pray enough, did i pray correctly, did i pray earnestly, did i praise as much as i prayed? I struggle with my faith right now, because i'm going through the deepest vally i've ever been through. I keep thinking 'why'? I know logically why - but i can't wrap my heart around God's plans. I can't completely give in and surrender and let go. One of the things i'm struggling with is praying the same menial prayers over and over and over again, every min i'm in pain or hurt. Im not exercising my faith.  I have to have faith that God will answer those prayers and let him work.

Im probably not much help, but i felt compelled to say something. To tell you i relate to your words and that i'm here in the same boat of sorts. - Cathi

[April2]

God understands your heart and is pleased with your willingness to grow in your faith. The only thing is, our faith tends to grow during the hard times not the good times. It's when we have nowhere else to turn but to God and when we see Him move and answer prayers it encourages us and grows our faith. Sometimes He tests us to see if we'll still follow Him even when things are going badly but if we will hang in there and cling to Him we won't always be in the valley. We will have our mountain top experiences too. But even when we are walking through the valley the Lord promises that He will walk with us.

The bible says we only need the faith of a mustard seed. The mustard seed is one of the smallest seeds there is! But God can take that and grow it into a huge oak tree. It just takes time, spending time with Him in prayer, worship and His Word. Every day our faith grows a little more. The more you get to know Him the more you will trust Him. When we fear punishment from Him the bible says that means we haven't fully matured into His love or fully trusted Him yet, because perfect love casts out fear. Fear comes from the evil one, not God. He just wants us to relax, give our worries over to Him and then let go and trust Him to do what He feels is best in our circumstances. That takes a lot of trust! But when we can do it, then we will have that perfect peace that surpasses all understanding even in the midsts of our hard times. Only God can do that! It's a peace the world does not understand.
Our faith and relationship with God is like a journey, one step at a time. Each step brings us closer to God and helps our faith grow stronger. So keep walking towards Him. Every step you take towards God He will take two steps towards you!
I hope this encourages you and shows you how much He truly loves you! God bless you!