The Attitude of Faith

Read Hebrews 11:6. According to this verse, without faith it is impossible to please God. What do you think it means to live a life of faith? 

Think of faith as an attitude. Like glasses for your eyes, faith changes the way everything looks. God meets each of us at our level of expectation. The greater your faith, the greater the opportunity for God to work! Romans 10:17 says, “Faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.” According to this verse, how does faith grow? What have you learned about this process in your life? 

Christians frequently don’t hear the promptings of the Holy Spirit because they don’t expect the Holy Spirit to prompt them. The story of Samuel powerfully illustrates this point. In his first experience with the voice of God, Samuel mistook God’s voice for the voice of his mentor, Eli (1 Samuel 3:4–5). It’s easy to miss the voice of God because it often sounds like a familiar voice. It may sound like the thoughts in your head at first, and if you’re unwilling to pause and listen, you will move right past it. Discerning God’s voice requires that you slow down and linger. 

Three times Samuel heard God speak and thought it was Eli, but the fourth time he began a conversation with God. What changed that enabled Samuel to discern God’s voice? After the third time God spoke, Eli instructed Samuel to go back to his room and listen for God. So Samuel went back, expecting God to speak. Expectation opens the door for the supernatural. If you don’t expect God to speak, you will often miss his promptings. 

After Samuel returned to his room, God called his name again. But this time, rather than running to Eli, Samuel responded to God by saying, “Speak, for your servant hears” (1 Samuel 3:10). 

Samuel specifically asked God to speak, and this is important. Jesus taught that whoever asks, receives, and that whoever seeks, finds (Matthew 7:7–11). There are blessings from God that you will never receive until you specifically ask. Are you asking God to speak to you throughout your day? If not, then it will be impossible to cultivate habit 3 in your life. 

Samuel came to God with an expectation, asked God to speak, and then said, “Your servant hears.” He called himself God’s “servant,” demonstrating a deep reverence for God. This attitude of the heart cannot be overstated. Pride blocks the voice of God, and treating the things of God lightly will silence his voice in your life. When we revere God’s Spirit, his voice is amplified, and Samuel’s experience with God teaches us how to develop an EAR to hear.  

• Expect God to speak. 
• Ask God to speak. 
• Revere God in your heart. 

Applying these three instructions daily will open up the possibility of a dynamic, Spirit-led life. God will begin to guide you. Miracles will begin to find you. Start by praying, “Here I am, Lord.” As you make yourself available and take the time to listen, the voice of God will stand out. 

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