The Promise & The Word

An Act of Faith
By Brendalyn Crudup Martin

When we teach our children to pray, we are doing God’s will, but we must teach by example in our daily walk with the Master. The stronger our faith, the easier it is for us to go to the Father in prayer.

Raise up a child in the way he should be taught, and when he is old, he will not depart from it.

That doesn’t mean he or she will never make mistakes. We all make mistakes. And sometimes we leave God’s grace for a while. Sometimes we let worldly things pull us away. But the seeds of faith, planted in our early years, when nourished, keep us from departing from God’s will.

When we spend time telling our children and grandchildren stories from the Bible, we are planting seeds of faith. How many of us remember the Bible stories we learned at the feet of parents and grandparents? But those seeds still need nourishment.

You don’t plant a garden, put some food and water on it, and then never do anything else to take care of it. If you do, it will wither and die, or it can become overgrown with weeds if you never prune it.

We need to constantly reinforce our faith and that of our children. The Bible says that faith without works is dead. How are we applying our faith? Do we help those in need or just turn and rush the other way. Do we stand up and proudly proclaim our belief in the Living God?

Do we attend Bible Study, Sunday school or Church services, or do we find excuses to stay home? Do we take the time to spread God’s Word among our friends, family, or people we meet? If we have no deeds, where is our faith? We need faith like the men and women of the Bible.

And what more shall I say? I do not have time to tell about Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel and the prophets, who through faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, and gained what was promised; who shut the mouths of lions, quenched the fury of the flames, and escaped the edge of the sword, whose weakness was turned to strength; and who became powerful in battle and routed foreign armies. Hebrew 11:32-34

Could a young boy face a fully armored giant with only a slingshot and a prayer, unless he had faith? It was David’s faith in God and his obedience to God’s Word that allowed him to face his giant.\? He stepped out on his faith and was rewarded for it.

Too often, we give in and give up when we face hard times. But Hebrew 12:2 tells us to fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith. We need to remember this is a spiritual battle we are in. We need to be strong in the Lord, not try to do it on our own. We need to put on the armor of God, the belt of Truth, the breastplate of Righteousness, the helmet of Salvation, the shield of Faith and the Sword of Truth. (Eph 6:10 - 22)

The Armour of God - Eph
10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power.
11 Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes.
12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.
13 Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.

We must remember to plant our seeds of faith deep in good spiritual soil, keep it nourished and well kept by staying in the “perfect Will of God, so that it grows beautiful and strong and spreads it leaves touching all our relationships. Then when we come against the trials of life and when doubt attacks us, our faith will allow us to stand strong in the Word of God, armed with the power of our faith.

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Brendalyn Crudup Martin is an Ordained Deacon in the Christian Methodist Episcopal Church (CME) and the Associate Assistant to the Rev. Felix M Jones, Pastor of Phillips Memorial CME Church in Phoenix, AZ.

She is a wife, mother and grandmother and a published writer of poetry, devotionals and personal experience articles. She is also the Poet Laureate of the Arizona Supreme Court.