"Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." - Hebrews 11:1
That is an amazing explanation of faith. It tells us not only what faith is, but also how it should be considered. A lot of us will have no problem admitting that we are lacking in the faith department. We have a hard time entrusting our most prideful parts of our lives to Him. Though, sometimes, we do have moments of unbridled faith and love. These moments usually come in dark times in our lives when we believe we need God's help the most. Other times, these moments occur when we get answers to our purpose and talents in this life. Once we realize God's promise, and we make that jump to have faith in that end, it is easy to believe that it will happen. We have no problem seeing the end result. For example, you realize you have talents in medicine and pray for guidance. You receive a blessing letting you know that medicine is where you should do the work of God and spread His word. You are on your way to becoming a doctor. We have no problem believing that the end result will occur, and it is important that when we realize God's direction and guidance in our lives, that we keep our mind focus on His will. Our problem occurs after this faith in the end result occurs. We tend to ask God "how?" Now this, in and of itself, is not the problem. Trusting God with every facet of your life and asking His guidance in all you do is a good thing, and is a vital part of walking with God. Our problem becomes our impatience. We want to rush the process. There is a saying that "Faith in God includes faith in His timing." This perfectly relates to our inability to follow God's process to His will for our lives. We want to take shortcuts, or we want to be more than He has asked us to be. This is where pride, and self-glorification can really get us into trouble, and possibly put us in danger of the enemy taking God's plan for our lives and turning it into a negative, if we let him. We also are tempted to ask Him for or believe things are promised that are above and beyond the end result. Harry Emerson Fosdick said, "God is not a cosmic bellboy for whom we can press a button to get things done." This is, unfortunately, the trap we fall into when we let our minds wander to our desires, instead of His plan. Hebrews 11:8 says, "By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went." Abraham had no idea where he was going or what to do, but he still walked, and followed God's plan for his life. This faith, not only in the end result, but in every step of the process along the way is what is required. No explanation is required, no further instructions, no need for over-analyzing every little detail, just faith in His promises and surrender to His will.
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