No man is a total loss 

We always think that we have to have a perfect faith. A huge faith. We think that our faith has to be bigger than the mountain that needs moving. Of course, that’s logical, but the problem is, it’s just not true.

So I want to introduce you to a man called Abraham. Maybe you already know him. Abraham was the father of Israel. You can read about him from Genesis chapter 12 onwards. 

There is no doubt that Abraham had faith. Seventy-five years old. No children. No hope of children. Yet he left the comfort and safety of his home on the promise from God that he’d become the father of nations. Impossible, right? And yet, he went. He believed.

But this was no perfect man of unfailing faith. As the story went on, you see time after time that Abraham’s faith wavered. He made bad choices and doubted God; he fought and argued and lost the plot along the way. 

Even so, Paul says, thousands of years later, in his letter to the Romans:

For the promise that he would inherit the world did not come to Abraham or to his descendants through the law but through the righteousness of faith. (Romans 4:13)

In other words, you and I can judge Abraham for what he did and didn’t do, but God won’t. And the reason that He won’t is because Abraham believed. Granted, he did it imperfectly, but he believed enough to follow God on a journey and stick with it for twenty-five years. 

It wasn’t perfection that saw the promises of God realised. It was one man’s simple, imperfect, meandering yet heartfelt faith. This is what the Bible says about Abraham:

And he believed the LORD; and the LORD reckoned it to him as righteousness. (Genesis 15:6)

That’s just like you and me. 

When we put our faith in Jesus, our right standing with God (our righteousness) comes through faith. It’s a gift called grace. And it’s not just for our eternal life; it’s for life here and now. And it’s for all our fears and failures and the mistakes we make along the way.

So don’t wait for your faith to somehow become perfect. Start today, with your tiny, faltering faith. Like a mustard seed, it seems too small to make a difference – but it’s all God needs to move the mountains in your life. That’s it!

LIFE APPLICATION QUESTIONS 

• How big is your faith? How big do you think it needs to be to take on the mountains you’ve got in your life?
• Read slowly through Abraham’s journey of faith in Genesis chapter 12 onwards. Pay attention to the times when he stumbles or outright fails. What does God say to him? What does Abraham learn from those times? What can you learn from his experiences?
• Spend some time in prayer. Thank God for His good gift of grace, which means that we are made right with Him through faith, not through the perfection of our attitudes or actions. 
• Last of all, ask Him to continue to grow the small seed of your faith, to draw you closer to Him, to fill your life with His presence – not just for eternity, but for today.

You can continue discovering God's word FRESH for you each day. Receive the FRESH daily devotional in your inbox here!