The Session: How We Are Different Because of Faith

And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him." (Hebrews 11:6)

We Will be More Confident

• The writer of Hebrews 11:1-2 explains faith like this, “Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see. This is what the ancients were commended for.”
• We are more confident in our decisions

We will have a Godly Worldview

• By faith, we understand that the universe was formed at God‘s command so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible
• We will by face put confidence in Psalm 139:13 “For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother's womb"

We Will Be More at Peace

• II Corinthians 12:9,
• “But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness. Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.’” So when we are weak in our faith our God is made strong.

We will be confident to Do More Challenging Things

• Paul writes in Philippians 4:13, “I can do all things through him who gives me strength.”
• Psalm 46:1 is also an encouragement when we face struggles, “God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.

We will have more faith when God appears silent

Isaiah 55:8-9 tells us, “‘For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,’ declares the Lord. ‘As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.’”

Joyce Meyer writes, “The tendency to want to know about everything that's going on can be detrimental to your Christian walk. Sometimes knowing everything can be uncomfortable and can even hurt you.”

How are we better or different physically emotionally and spiritually because of Faith

Mental and emotional impact:

• Faith can provide a sense of comfort, purpose, and support, which can mitigate stress and anxiety, leading to positive physical outcomes.
• No direct physical alteration: There's no scientific evidence that faith itself directly changes the structure or function of the human body on a biological level.
• Individual variations: The impact of faith on physical health can differ greatly based on personal beliefs, practices, and individual circumstances.

In Counselling the Culturally Diverse Theory and Practice (2016), it says, “it appears that people require faith as well as reason to be healthy and that psychology may profit from allowing the spirit to re-join matters of the mind and body.” It seems that society is seeing the importance of the Spirit as well. His ways are not our ways.”

Events like this happen so that God can grow our faith. It is important that we approach them with patience.

Action Point

It is important that we grow our faith in God’s timing. To do that we also have to grow our trust in Him.