Fruitful Living
25 ways to build your faith in God and trust Him in everything (Part 1)
And without faith it is impossible to please God because anyone who comes to Him must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who earnestly seek Him – Hebrews 11:6 NIV
INTRODUCTION
Hebrews 11:6 tells us that without faith, it is impossible to please God. Since pleasing God is essential to an abundant life, building our faith is a natural and essential step. We are living in a world where the temptation to doubt God is constant. His children need more than ever to learn how to trust in His goodness and have strong faith.
Below are some practical ways to move toward a stronger faith and a heart that trusts God’s promises.
- REMEMBER GOD’S FAITHFULNESS.
Our faith will naturally grow when we make a conscious effort to look for ways to trust God. Let us pray and seek the Lord’s help when faced with a need or going through a difficult time in your life. Then let us watch and wait. He will move because we are trusting in Him. Once we see His intervention or Him speaking into our difficulty, we will have something to hold onto; our heavenly Father cares and moves on our behalf! The next time we find it difficult to trust God, let us remember He has moved on our behalf before, and He will do it again. Step by step, we will build a strong faith that will help us overcome life’s challenges.
- START A PRAYER AND PRAISE JOURNAL
When we stand face to face with spiritual obstacles and feel the crushing weight of our burdens, it causes us to forget what God has already done for us. A simple way to keep our focus on God in those moments is to start a prayer and praise journal. Let us use our journal (note book) to write down prayer requests, including the date we entrusted them into God’s hands. When God answers our prayer, we should add that information to our journal. Our journal (note book) will contain the evidence you need to face difficult times with a deeper trust in our loving Father’s faithfulness.
- REFLECT ON GOD’S PROMISES
Difficult things often arrive suddenly in our lives, as if dropping out of the sky onto our path. All we can see at that moment is a mountain. It blocks our progress and our vision of what lies ahead. When we focus on the mountain, we lose faith in God. The Bible tells of God’s children overcoming obstacles with His help. Let us ask God to give us the strength to climb our mountain or make a way through to the other side. As God takes us by the hand and leads us to victory, our trust will soon overshadow all our mountains.
- TRUST GOD’S PLANS.
When we receive bad news or come face to face with a difficult circumstance, often it shakes us to our core and fear sets in. A perfect way to build the kind of faith that does not fail is to always trust in God’s plans. He knows our future and has plans to prosper us. Life-shattering moments are no surprise to God, even if tears fill our path. Let us memorise Jeremiah 29:11 and hold it in our heart. When we face the temptation to doubt God’s presence in our lives, this Bible verse can be a reminder that we never walk alone. Walking with the Lord is the best way to learn to trust Him with everything.
- PRAY GOD’S PROMISES BACK TO HIM.
A great way to increase our faith is to pray for the promises found in God’s Word. Some promises in the Bible are for a specific person or people. Faith, however, calls us to believe that if God did it for those people, He can do it for us. Let us search for Bible verses that we can pray over any situation. Our faith can easily grow with each answer to a prayer that we receive, each promise He grants, and each deliverance He provides. He can also test our faith when He determines it is in our best interest for us to pass through the circumstance. Praying His Word back to Him will show us a lot about our faith and teach us about the will of God.
- SET ASIDE TIME TO LISTEN.
Our lives are full of things demanding our attention and draining our time. There is a remedy for these distractions: Let us start listening to the Word of God on a daily basis. Instead of listening to music on the radio during our drive to work, we could try listening to a podcast of our favourite pastor. Instead of spending two or three hours a night watching our favourite TV programmes, let us set aside some time for a Bible study instead. Philippians 4:8 provides a list of what we should focus on, but life chokes these things out. Taking intentional steps to listen to the teaching of His Word will bring direction, hope and growth to our lives.
- ASK THE LORD JESUS TO INCREASE YOUR FAITH.
There is a simple way to grow our faith: let us ask Christ Jesus to increase it. His followers asked Him to increase their faith in Luke 17:5, and they saw His miracles and listened to His teachings firsthand. If they needed more faith to accomplish the Lord’s will, how much more do we?
To build our faith, let us ask the Lord to increase it to the measure needed to fulfill His will. God is faithful to His children, and His desire is for us to walk in faith. So, let us boldly ask the Lord for a full measure of faith.
- READ AND MEMORISE GOD’S WORD.
There are a lot of bad things dominating our hearts and minds, most of which will serve no purpose in hard times. In comparison, the Word of God is a pillar of fire guiding us through the darkness of difficult circumstances. Reading the Bible reveals God’s goodness and faithfulness. Our faith will deepen when we learn about the God we serve. Memorising Bible verses will help us when we are faced with trials. We will come out to the other side of our trial in victory. We won’t be victorious because of our strength, but because we trusted in God. Each time we overcome with help from the Word of God, our trust will be stronger.
- SURRENDER YOUR TRUST TO GOD.
The sin of self-reliance is a prime example of lacking trust in God. If we are not trusting God, then our faith is based on something else. Having faith in other things restricts the power of God in our lives. Eventually, we are disappointed because of human limitations. Let us note the areas of our lives in which we have not surrendered into God’s hands and then let us ask Him to take control. Let us trust our lives to God’s plans and God’s ways. This will grow our faith because we learn that His ways are far better than anything we could have imagined. Let us surrender results in a stronger faith and a deeper trust in God.
- IDENTIFY AREAS OF UNBELIEF
Mark 9:24 is a picture of what happens when unbelief meets Jesus Christ face-to-face. The father in this story brought a profound, personal need before the Lord, and the encounter revealed his unbelief. It is best not to wait until we are in a crisis to discover our unbelief because unbelief hinders our faith. Let us ask God to examine our heart and write down what He reveals. Let us fight against our unbelief with the help of the Word of God. As we move from unbelief to belief, our faith and trust in God will flourish.
- TRUST GOD WITH YOUR PAIN
When difficult times come, it is easy to question the goodness of God. Our heart then starts equating God’s goodness with our will, and this leads to disappointment. Let us resist the urge to think God does not care about us when things do not go as we desire. We must fix our mind and spirit on the promises of God and trust Him no matter what happens. The purpose for suffering in our lives is in God’s hands. He knows our deepest and most desperate needs and is ready to discuss them with us. He has prepared enough faith for us to be victorious, so let us ask Him to fill our spirit with all we need. There is pain in the night, but with Him, joy comes in the morning.
- DENOUNCE EMPTY SUBSTITUTIONS OF FAITH
The Old Testament tells how some of God’s children trusted in everything but Him. The results were devastating and painful. Today’s culture offers many idols for us to trust, but they are just empty substitutions for the Living God. Good things like church, jobs, and family can become idols, and God directly opposes idols of any kind. Let us pray and ask Him to reveal if we have based our faith on anything other than Him. Let us tear down any substitutes the Holy Spirit reveals and request His help to have faith in God alone. Once the Lord helps us remove the obstacles to growth, we will experience a greater measure of faith.
To be continued!
If you have not yet confessed Jesus as your Lord and personal Saviour, this is an opportunity to do so. And when you do, just surrender totally to Him with your eternal future, for He will never leave nor forsake you – Hebrews 13:5
Stay Blessed!
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Website: saltandlightministriesgh.org
Fruitful Living
Hijab (Islamic veil) as an act of worship (Part 2)
Consequences on lack of knowledge about Hijab can cause Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STD)
Lack of knowledge about the use of Hijab and its role in promoting modesty can contribute significantly to immoral behaviour in societies, which in turn increases the spread of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs).
In Islamic teachings, the Hijab is not only a piece of clothing but a broader concept of modesty, dignity and moral conduct.
When society underestimates the value of modesty in behaviour, dress and interactions, it can lead to permissiveness in relationships, unsafe sexual practice, and other behaviours that increase the risk of STDs.
Peer Pressure and Western Influence in Urban Areas
In Urban centres like Accra and Kumasi, younger generations are often influenced by Western media and fashion trends that promote revealing clothing and casual attitudes towards relationships.
This cultural shift, coupled with inadequate education about Islamic principles like the hijab’s role in promoting modesty, can lead to high incidence of promiscuity.
For instance, young women and men engaging in risky sexual behaviour without understanding the consequences often do so under the influence of societal trends. This increase exposure to sexually transmitted diseases like HIV/AIDS, which remains a public health issue in Ghana.
Misinterpretation of Freedom and Modernity
In higher educational institutions, some students perceive wearing the hijab as outdated or limiting their freedom. This lack of knowledge about the hijab’s significance can lead to adopting lifestyles that prioritize fashion over modesty.
For example, a university student might choose to attend social gatherings where alcohol and casual sexual encounters are common, driven by peer pressure and a desire to fit in.
Without the grounding principles of modesty and chastity, the chances of unprotected and reckless sexual activity rise, contributing to the spread of diseases like gonorrhea or syphilis.
Both scenarios highlight how a lack of knowledge about the hijab’s deeper values can lead to behaviors that put individuals and society at risk.
While the hijab alone does not guarantee moral behavior, its principles, when understood and embraced, can foster a culture of self-respect and responsibility that mitigates the spread of STDs.
Education on these values, coupled with awareness of sexual health, is critical for addressing this challenge in society. Casual relationships contribute to the spread of STDs, which harm both individuals and communities.
Fundamental Human Rights: Religious Freedom
Ghana, like many democratic nations, guarantees the right to freedom of religion. Article 21(1) ( c ) of the 1992 Constitution of the Republic of Ghana explicitly states: “All persons shall have the right to freedom to practice any religion and to manifest such practice.”
This provision protects every citizen’s right to practice their religion, including the wearing of Hijab, without discrimination or intimidation.
Similarly, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) 1948, Article 18, asserts:
“Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience, and religion; this right includes freedom to change his religion or belief, and freedom, either alone or in community with others and in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship, and observance.”
These legal provisions recognise Hijab as part of the manifestation of Islam and affirm that Muslim women have the right to wear Hijab in public institutions
By Imam Alhaji Saeed Abdulai, the Author
Fruitful Living
Christ Our Lord (Final part)
This sin gave Satan the firm foothold he had been looking for. Sin and Satan now held the world in a vice-like grip. God’s people now walked in darkness: oppressed by Satan. Spiritually speaking, they lived in a never-ending winter: rarely experiencing the warmth of God’s love.
Enslaved by sin as they were, they were doomed to die both physically and spiritually. ‘(Adam’s) sin brought death with it. As a result, death has spread to the whole human race because everyone has sinned.’ – Romans 5:12
Who could rescue God’s creation from the curse of Satan, the enemy? Mankind’s rescuer would need to be someone strong enough to engage in battle against the power of Satan; someone who would fight compromise with evil, for evil cannot combat evil; only goodness can do that.
There was only one person who could even attempt the rescue bid: God Himself. So God entered the world in the form of the perfect man: Jesus Christ. ‘God in Christ was reconciling the world to Himself.’ – 2 Corinthians 5:19
Jesus knew the solution to the sin-problem. He, the man-who-never-sinned, would need to take upon Himself every sin each individual in the world had ever committed and would ever commit. It would be as though He Himself had committed the crimes of the cosmos. He would, therefore, pay the penalty in person. He would die: ‘Without beauty, without majesty (we saw him), no looks to attract our eyes; a thing despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows and familiar with suffering, a man to make people screen their faces He was despised and we took no account of Him.
And yet ours were the sufferings He bore, ours the sorrows He carried. But we, we thought of Him as someone punished, struck by God, and brought low. Yet He was pierced through for our faults, crushed for our sins. On Him lies a punishment that brings us peace, and through His wounds we are healed. We had all gone astray like sheep, each taking his own way, and Yahweh burdened Him with the sins of all of us.’ – Isaiah 53:2-6
PRAYER
Lord Jesus, help me to drink in these facts:
Mine were the sufferings you bore
Mine the sorrows you carried
You were pierced through for my faults
Crushed because of my sin
God laid on you the punishment that brought me
Peace
Joy
And a whole new start in life
Help me to say an adequate
Thank you.
RANSOMED
A man was once caught stealing from his employers. When the court case was heard, the judge imposed a fine of GH¢50. Failure to pay the prescribed fine, he said, would result in imprisonment. The night of the court hearing, the man despaired. He had no money. That was why he had resorted to stealing in the first place. How was he to pay the fine? The thought of a period in prison filled him with horror. Next morning, a brown envelope fell through this man’s letter-box. It contained ten, crisp, new GH¢5 notes and a hand-written explanation: To pay off the debt. The offender never discovered where the money had come from. The only information he could glean was that a member of the nearby church heard of his plight and decided to set him free from the threat of imprisonment.
When Jesus died on the cruel cross, He brought our release from the clutches of the evil one. He also set us free from the bondage to sin in which we had been trapped. And He delivered us from the effects of the sin-stained past and from the guilt that enshrouded us: The death of Christ ‘One act of perfect righteousness, presents all men freely acquitted in the sight of God.’ – Romans 5:18. ‘God loved the world so much that He gave his only Son, that everyone who has faith in Him may not die but have eternal life.’ – John 3:16
This article has been heavily inspired by Joyce Hugget in “Approaching Easter, Meditations for Lent.”
By Rev. Dr Joyce Aryee, the author
