Is your faith being challenged?

I have been a member of a church congregation for numerous years. The idea of people fellowshipping, learning more about God and simply enjoying life and loving others was a concept was created by God. We need each other because we were created that way. God is a very community-oriented, social God. He enjoys when we gather and is right there in the midst of it all. 🙂

My life has been turned up-side-down this year as God has been exposing things that I have done for years and years that aren’t necessary requirements to serve Him or to be used by Him. God wants us to have full reliance on Him and Him alone. Reliance on friends, family, church members, a job etc., are ok, but we must ensure our focus remains on God or our faith may grow weary.

The religious church system that we are so engrained in, feeds us (mostly milk) causing most to fall into dependance on the pastor and leaders without taking initiative to grow in God between services. In the past 10 years, my faith was strong in the corporate setting. I found myself telling people to come to my church to get healed and though that can be ok, I was dependant on it. That’s where my faith was the strongest. Why not pray for them right then and there?? I didn’t have faith for that. My faith was established and grown in the corporate setting fully believing that God would do something in the corporate setting and at times he did, BUT what about the people that never made it to my church… they missed out and so did I. I don’t ever remember the Apostle Paul saying, come to the upper room, you can experience God there! Though they may have brought people there, the Apostles demonstrated the Power of God to the individual FIRST.

This was the case for praying, worshipping and reading the Word too!! I was dependant on the church setting to provide all of this for my life. Who’s fault was it? MINE, all mine. I never sought God outside of the church setting. Why should I? I was fed each week like a fatted calf ready for slaughter. All my needs were met. I didn’t have any struggles, nor did I teach myself to go to God, but rather to wait for the next service. I enjoyed the bottle and liked being fed.

In order for our faith to grow, we need to be challenged and tested. I have always felt that experience is one of the best teachers. Sometimes the best way to learn to fly, is by jumping out of the nest… and God knows I’d be thrown out a few times too. When we are challenged, placed out of our comfort zone and accept the challenge, we force ourselves to grow. We willingly take flight. Either, we will quickly learn to flap our wings or we hit the ground. We may break a wing, but it’ll heal. We need to become more active in our faith… OUTSIDE of comfortable church services.

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