Reading what was written down by the saints of old and then writing down our own faith stories will increase our faith in the New Year and for years to come.
Well, here we are a month into the New Year. Many of us may have set personal goals and intentions for 2024. We may have chosen a word for the year. But how many of us are still going strong with those goals and intentions? If you do a quick Google search, you find that only about 9% of people carry out their New Year's resolutions for the whole year. On the flip side, 43% quit by the end of January. I would contend that when we are trying to reach these New Year’s personal goals and intentions in our own strength, we most likely will fail to succeed in staying the course throughout the year. However, when we rely on the Holy Spirit and set spiritual goals and intentions, we will find that personal and physical goals will come naturally.
"But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you." Matthew 6:33
I believe that faith in God is the driver of all that we think, say, and do. What if we set our spiritual intention for 2024 to increase our faith? You might be thinking, “Oh, I know what happens when you pray for more faith—you get tested! Not sure I’m looking for more tests in the New Year.” Same! Yet, when we really reflect on Scripture and the Bible as a whole, we see testing in a positive light. When a person physically trains, their muscles get stronger and they can complete with great success that which they are training towards. In the same way, when our faith is tested, we spiritually train by relying on the Holy Spirit where our strength is found. In each test of faith, we will find ourselves more and more at peace.
"Count it all joy, my brothers,[b] when you meet trials of various kinds, 3 for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. 4 And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing." James 1:2-4
"Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him." James 1:12
Let’s take a look at the following “painless” ways to increase our faith in the New Year. When they are habitually implemented with intention, they will create muscle memory for our next test of faith.
Visit the “Hebrews' Hall of Faith”
The Hebrews' “Hall of Faith” is a historical account of Old Testament saints who were obedient to God’s call on their lives and who did so with great courage and trust. They believed in God’s promises and His Word. These Scripture verses not only provide great biblical history, but they also provide us with great encouragement and inspiration for our faith walk. Time and again, God showed Himself faithful as He worked in those Old Testament believers to obey, setting an example for us of what trusting a good and faithful God looks like and how God responds. What God did for them is just as true for us today.
The Psalms of King David showcase the faith struggle in a believer’s life. David would speak of his anxiety in a situation, but then he would remember God’s past faithfulness and focus on that, believing he would be delivered again by His faithful God. There were times when David didn’t have anything to draw from in his own life, so instead he remembered what God did when He rescued the Israelites from Pharaoh, drawing on God’s faithful nature.
I took a page from King David’s Psalms during my very difficult 2022-2023, which featured all manner of serious trials. I prayed and believed that just as God had delivered me before, He would do so again, and He did! It might not have always looked like I had envisioned my deliverance, but His plan for deliverance was better than my plan. He is always looking out for our spiritual best because He is our good, good Father. I know He will do the same for you!
Journal God’s Faithfulness
Much like the biblical “Hall of Faith,” we all have our own personal “halls of faith.” Journaling is a way to record and remember how God has been faithful to us. There are many ways to journal and different purposes for journaling, but by personalizing God’s faithfulness through journaling, I believe we will see a spiritual connection to all the other reasons we might journal.
This last year I was faced with not one, but two biopsies dealing with different systems of the body, yet both areas for biopsy were biopsied before. I also had to have a CT scan of yet another system of my body unrelated to the two biopsies. To be completely transparent, I was very anxious about the results of all three. Even though the last time those areas were biopsied/scanned the results were benign and the likelihood of me having the latest biopsies/scans be of concern was slim to none, I found myself worrying a lot. But then I kept remembering God’s faithfulness to me before and that if He did it then, He would do it again. And He did—not only in the results, but I started to feel more at peace about all of it and wasn’t thinking about it as much or letting it drag me down.
Be encouraged that having a journal like this will indeed remind you of all that God has done for you. If you haven’t journaled before, start recording all that you can remember of God’s faithfulness to you, and then from this point on, be intentional about recording God’s faithfulness. You will find your faith increasing by leaps and bounds.
Record Your Anxious Thoughts
You might be thinking, Why do I want to remember when I’ve been anxious or what I was anxious about? Bear with me…
Psychology Today wrote an article about a Penn State University study whose participants wrote down things they were worried about. After 30 days, 91% of what the participants worried about was false alarms. Of the 9% whose worries came true, the outcome was better than expected about a third of the time. For one in four participants, zero of what they worried about came to be.
Satan is the father of lies, and when we allow ourselves to believe the lies and worry, we are taking our focus off of the Truth of who God is and what He can do and placing our focus squarely on a lie.
Instead, we need to “take every thought captive to the obedience of Christ” (2 Corinthians 10:5).
If you’re like me, you may worry or be anxious about things over and over again - different months, different years, different situations, etc. Yet, when we record our worries and then go back and record how they never came to fruition or how they actually played out, imagine how much that would increase our faith and squelch the lies from rearing their ugly heads over and over again.
When Your Faith Is Tested
Tests of our faith are actually opportunities. It’s all about perspective. Instead of lamenting the test, praise the Test-administrator. When you think about tests that you take in school, at college, or in a job, you aren’t given the answers by the test administrator. They don’t even help you with the test, but our Test-administrator not only helps us with the test, but He is right there with us strengthening us and taking the test with us! How amazing is that? God doesn’t set us up for failure. He sets us up for success! With this perspective, you will find your faith increasing!
We are forgetful creatures, aren’t we? The Bible is replete with stories of people who witnessed God’s faithfulness and His works right before their eyes, but when they were faced with the same situation again, they would forget and cry out to God in fear and worry. We are no different.
Yet, if you’re like me, the act of writing down something imprints it on your brain. Maybe God wired us that way for a reason. Maybe that reason, like the writers of the Bible who were inspired by God to write, is to imprint upon our hearts all that God has done for us already and to imprint upon our hearts all that God will do for us in the future.
Reading what was written down by the saints of old and then writing down our own faith stories will increase our faith in the New Year and for years to come.
Photo Credit: ©Getty Images/Krisanapong Detraphiphat
