Faith that Pleases God

“By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going.” Hebrews 11:8 (NIV) 

Would you, do it? Would you, like Abraham, leave the security of where you were and set out on a journey if you did not know where you were going? Sounds absurd, doesn’t it? That’s the kind of faith that pleases God! To do what Abraham did, you would have to be absolutely convinced that the God who called you, loved you, and was able to sustain you and lead you. Faith is an adventure because it risks it all in obedience to Him. Abraham didn’t set out on his own. It wasn’t even his idea. He didn’t wake up one morning and say, “God, I’m ready to move and I need you to lead me to another place.”  The Bible says, “By faith, Abraham, when called to go …” It was God’s initiative from the beginning, yet God didn’t explain everything upfront.   

When you live by faith, you will discover a truth - Sometimes, the path is not clear until you start the journey. No wonder Abraham has been called the Father of Faith. What an adventure Abraham had - and we get to read about it, as he set out in obedience to God’s call! As his story unfolds, you will find that it wasn’t even so much about the destination as much as it was about the journey itself. His journey of faith met with obstacles, enemies, struggles, and challenges that kept him dependent on the God who called him. Abraham was also called the friend of God. When God is all you have, you discover that God is all you need! God did miraculous things through Abraham - miracles that even his critics would give God the credit for! I love that his journey also reveals the detours he took from faith, times of faithlessness, and doubt. Yet, regardless of the mistakes he made, he always returned to the God who called him and found Him faithful!  

The God of Abraham is the same God today. Jesus described the kind of faith that pleases God like this, “So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” Matthew 6:31-33 (NIV)  

You will not know all the answers. All you will need to know is that God does! That’s the adventure of living by faith!