Walking by Faith

The last couple of weeks have been a mixture of faith answers and faith challenges. When I first returned from Hong Kong, I was able to testify to the touch of God in my life - fatigue had diminished considerably and although pain was still a factor, it was being managed. There is nothing that gives me more joy than giving testimony to the goodness of God, and this testimony is a continuing experience.

On the other hand, there have also been many challenges to faith. Fatigue is still a factor, although it has improved 1000-fold compared to when I was undergoing chemotherapy. Sleep at nights, however, has been more of a problem in the last two weeks - I've never had a major problem with insomnia before, but now it is definitely shaping my nights and my days.

This morning I was praying and bringing these things again before the Lord. There is no question in my heart and mind that the Lord has promised to heal me - at the very beginning I received a clear word from the Lord on this issue (see "Torn Between the Two"). Yet I've also been wanting to recognize the stage and pace of God's healing work in my life. So I've had a "heart to heart" with the Lord about it, clarifying where things are and where we're going together in His plan and purpose.

At present, cancer is still a physical reality for me, but this is overridden by the hope and faith that comes from knowing the Lord and His promises. In fact, by its very nature, faith involves the unseen. Hebrews 11:1 says:

"Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.

I do not yet see the full healing of God (although I've experienced the miraculous touch of God on many occasions), but faith is an evidence not based on eyesight. It is not "seeing is believing," but rather "believing is seeing on another level." As 2 Corinthians 5:7 says:

"We live by faith, not by sight."

Or as the New Living Translation renders 2 Corinthians 5:7:

"That is why we live by believing and not by seeing."

I love the way The Amplified Bible puts Hebrews 11:1:

"Now faith is the assurance (the confirmation, the title deed) of the things [we] hope for, being the proof of things [we] do not see and the conviction of their reality [faith perceiving as real fact what is not revealed to the senses]."

And in his characteristically erudite turn of phrase, Eugene Peterson renders Hebrews 11:1 this way in The Message:

"The fundamental fact of existence is that this trust in God, this faith, is the firm foundation under everything that makes life worth living. It's our handle on what we can't see."

Some people think that faith means that I deny cancer's existence. I don't believe that is the biblical approach. It's not that I deny cancer's existence, I simply don't take it into account for my ultimate future. Cancer doesn't have the last word; God does.

We see this in Abraham's experience. Romans 4:19-21 gives us the clue, from Abraham's own story, as to how it works:

"Without weakening in his faith, he faced the fact that his body was as good as dead -- since he was about a hundred years old -- and that Sarah's womb was also dead. Yet he did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God, being fully persuaded that God had power to do what he had promised."

So, learning from Abraham, faith is about facing the condition (not denying it), but then recognizing that God's promise overrides the condition. It is being "convinced" and "persuaded" of a reality based on God's Word. It's about fighting "the good fight" of faith (2 Timothy 4:7). I consider God's faithfulness a solid foundation for my life and so, like Abraham, I am "fully persuaded that God [has] power to do what he had promised."