I was recently invited to a podcast to share my testimony and the vision of Fulfilled, and during the conversation I shared how my vision and purpose in life was delayed by my own decisions. After the podcast recording stopped, the host—a great friend of my family—pointed out that so many people have this misconception that God "will delay" your purpose if it's not "His timing," and how we use that as an excuse not to take action. I do believe that God "has a season to everything and a perfect time for every purpose under the sun"(1), but I do not think that God intentionally delays your purpose. I think that our purpose gets delay by our own decisions, whether you made those decisions consciously or unconsciously.
In this blog I would like to go over the fourth and last major factor that delays purpose.
4. Misconception and Lack of Faith
Faith—in my opinion—has to be one of the most misunderstood concepts in life, yet, is the thing most spoken about inside the church. People have a misconception about faith that hindrance their ability to walk in their purpose. I was trained in the church mentality that God is the one who needs to do everything for me. I used to believe that if something was "from God," then God needed to do all the work himself in my favor. People always rely on God to do everything for them. But the Bible indicates quite the opposite actually. People don't realize and understand what and how faith really works.
What is the true faith? What is the purpose of faith? And how do I use faith efficiently?
To keep things simple, faith is the ability to trust and believe God. The purpose of faith is for us to believe that God will complete His promises, plans and purpose in our life. Now in order for our faith to be complete, it must be accompany with action. Faith is the belief—the spiritual, mental and emotional idea—that God will help us reach His promises, plans and purpose for our life as we work for it. That's the missing link for thousands of people. I know it was for me for almost a decade. It was the "action" part, the "working" part that my faith was missing. Faith is for you to work for what you desire WITH the confidence that God will give it to you. (I know this sounds a little manipulative but it is the truth. Read Hebrews 11:1). Faith gives you the certainty that God will bless you with His promises AS YOU DESIRE THEM in your heart; and your heart's desire is expressed through your actions. As God sees you working to obtain His promises, He will give you the certainty that it is yours.
God's promises are not automatic. Every plan, purpose and promise of God is conditional. God has one requirement for every blessing and promise in His word, and that requirement is ACTION. We will never come into possession of the promises of God without having a level of faith that makes us take action. Churches today are filled with people with faith but no action. Faith in the kingdom of God is connected to the law of reward. In the Bible, faith is the only thing that is connected to a reward. Why? Because God's promises are not automatic! God made faith to be rewarded in his kingdom to inspire us to live, walk and WORK in faith. Transfer your faith from your mind and your heart to your feet. Walk by faith in what you are believing God will do for you.
If you want to maximum your faith, define faith as action! Every time you think you have "faith," check your action and activity level. Every person that ever received a miracle from Jesus did so because they ACTED on what they believed. As Paul the apostle said, "faith without works is dead." Action is the true evidence of your faith. Action is the expression of your faith. Action defines your level of faith. Action is faith and faith is action.
References:
(1) Ecclesiastes 3:1 (NKJV)
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