Last night's show at Agua Caliente Resort in Rancho Maroge, California was so incredibly fun! Thank you, everyone… what an amazing audience! And thank you, everyone, for all the thoughtful gifts and cards. You touch my heart!!!! I have to show you the funniest one, though. I walked into my dressing room, where Entertainment Director Monica Reeves put this blanket, keychain, and a bottle of French‘s mustard on my couch! 😂🤣😂🤣😂 I love it, and seriously Monica, it was the best laugh I had this week!!!!!!! Later after the show, as I was packing up the blanket, for some strange reason, my mustard blanket made me think of the parable of the mustard seed… thus my Sunday message came to mind. 🥰🤗
A friend of mine is going through a really challenging time. She’s struggling with the principle of Faith. She claims that because she’s very logical, faith doesn’t lead to any real action, common sense, or resolve. She said faith is like believing in a fairytale.
My heart breaks for her, and it’s hard to watch as she places all the pressure, heartbreak, and responsibility upon her shoulders. She is trying to fix everything by herself rather than utilize faith. But I have witnessed its power to lighten burdens and change the lives of so many people I know
Looking back on my own life, I know I could never have survived the many tests and trials if I had tried to go through them on my own. I have discovered that faith IS a power, a light in the darkness, an umbrella in the rain, and a railing to hold on to that get us through the mists of darkness. It’s REAL, and it works!!! We just have to access it by believing in God. As I watch her, she frantically spends all of her time trying to come up with solutions on her own. How exhausting and hopeless that can be. The Lord definitely wants us to put in the effort to ponder and think through our challenges; that’s how we “become wise,” as Mother Eve said. When we don’t have faith to trust in God’s guidance, we miss the miracles!
The Lord wants us to have Faith…. But we must remember Faith is a verb; it’s proactive, and to start, we must simply follow the teachings of the Savior. As we read them daily, they put gas in our car of faith, if you will, to hear God's promptings.
Interestingly my daughter and I were talking about faith a couple of nights ago. These were a few of her thoughts. I loved her 30+year old perspective.
•FAITH is like planting seeds. We must take the steps needed if something is going to grow.
•Faith is taking doctrine or the structure of religion and using belief to implement it. You can’t just say, “oh, I believe,” and that’s it. You have to be proactive, moving forward, and then applying it.
•Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ is a principle of action and power.
•Faith comes by hearing the words of God, and then we apply those teachings. We LIVE them; we DO them; that’s called FAITH in Jesus Christ.
I love her wisdom!🥰 We cannot live on borrowed light, as my mother would say to me. “Don’t live off my testimony Marie be pro” act” I've… use faith and find your own.”
In Matthew, we read about the Savior’s disciples, who were terrified when the storm came up in the sea. They did not understand why the Savior could sleep through such a terrible storm. They had to believe the Savior wouldn’t allow them to be hurt, but their faith was new…they were just learning the Savior’s teachings
Matthew 8:23-26
23 And when he was entered into a ship, his disciples followed him.
24 And, behold, there arose a great tempest in the sea, insomuch that the ship was covered with the waves: but he was asleep.
25 And his disciples came to him, and awoke him, saying, Lord, save us: we perish.
26 And he saith unto them, Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith? Then he arose, and rebuked the winds and the sea; and there was a great calm.
The Savior rebuked the wind but not the disciples. I believe with everything in me; the Savior knew how hard it was to have faith. That’s why He was always teaching about faith and trust. Each time something miraculous occurred, the disciples grew in faith. Remember? Faith is proactive. You don’t just have faith; you take it out for a spin. And you try to be just a little bit better, always with God’s help, every day. Agents who act rather than objects that are acted upon.
Jesus, on several occasions, taught His followers to “fear not” to “be not anxious.” These are people who saw the Savior in action every day and still needed to be reminded. But the Savior said to them in one way or another. “Be of good cheer; it is I; be not afraid.” Over and over again.
Jesus wanted to be trusted as their Lord in every storm of life. He wants His followers to be able to maintain their confidence in Him and worship their God’s glory
The greatest danger we all face is not being able to see Jesus during our storms. In that peak moment of fear when the night is the blackest, and the storm is the angriest, remember, Jesus will always draw near to us in order to reveal Himself as the Savior in our storms.
And all we have to do to start to act… apply some Faith.
Have the best Sunday
#Sundaymessage