Faithful Blog

This last year has been very trying! Hardships have seemed to multiply and God has searched me and streched me. In my own strength I have never been really able to sing "very good." I could sing with a group of people, but not by myself. When the oppurtunity for this group came up I told God He was crazy and that I could not sing. He whispered back, "If I want you to, you can," and He faithfully gave me the strength to sing.
It seems that we always start out in faith and then go right back to our strength--our flesh. But God has called us to continue in faith. Without faith it is impossible to please God and do what He asks of us. So as the year has progressed God has been persistently calling me to sing in many different venues, even other than Faithful, and it always seems to get harder. :-)
A week ago I was sitting in my car practicing a song I was supposed to sing. I could not get it! It sounded horrible! I was almost in tears. I cried out to God, " Lord I am asking for Your strength, why is this so hard!?!" Frustrated I got out of the car and went into practice. When it came my turn to sing, everyone cheered me on, and I moped and frowned. Many times before I had quoted the verse to my friends, " The Lord is My Confidence." Yet it was said with this helpless look of I CANNOT DO THIS!
When I left that day the Lord gently said to me, "You do not really believe that." My heart sank--He was right. I had very piously said to my friends, "The Lord is my Confidence," and never really believed it. The truth was, as I held the microphone in my hand my heart was scared, anxious, and trembling. Yet I knew that God is a God of peace and He commands me not to be anxious. He even promised to give me peace if I only asked! I realized if I really was putting my confidence in God then I would not be anxious, my face would not look hopeless, and my words would truly reflect the peace of my heart.
My prayer is that you would stop relying on your own strength and put your confidence in God. Think about the things you confess--do you really believe them and live them out. God looks past our outward religious acts and He knows if we really trust Him. Does your heart really trust God? Can you truly confess "the Lord is my confidence?"

Amy