Advance: Living Unstuck & Moving Forward in FaithSample

Day 2: Break Free and Move Forward:
Every one of us faces mountains at different times in our lives. For you, it could be the mountain of fear, lack, sickness, grief, rejection, bitterness, disappointment, or shame. It may be related to loved ones, or to finances.

The good news is that there are greater things ahead than anything you leave behind! God’s plans for you are good. The promises in His word are still true. He will give you the grace to move forward in whatever area you feel stuck in because God takes us from faith to faith, strength to strength, and glory to glory! He has more in store for you! There are some steps we must take in order to advance.

First, we must let go of something. In Deuteronomy 1:7 (NIV), they say “break camp,” which can be translated as “to break free from.” We all have to let go of something in order to take hold of the new things God has for us!

Paul said in Philippians 3:13b-14 (NIV), “but one thing I do: forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.”

The second way we advance is to magnify Him! To magnify means to focus on something or zoom in. Just as you would use a magnifying glass to zoom in on something, when we are facing a mountain, we must zoom in on the greatness of God. Whatever you focus on becomes big in your eyes. When we magnify fear, it can overwhelm us; when we magnify God and what His word says, faith rises up in our lives! Our perspective changes when we begin to focus on the greatness of God and meditate on His faithfulness.

Psalm 77:11-12 (NIV) says, “I will remember the deeds of the Lord, yes I will remember your miracles of long ago. I will consider all your works and meditate on all your mighty deeds.” This is something that the children of Israel forgot. God had done incredible things for them: He brought them out of bondage, parted the Red Sea, fed them by raining manna down from heaven, gave them water out of a rock, and led them by a cloud during the day and fire by night. He had done miraculous things, but they still complained and didn’t believe in God’s ability to give them the new land. Even though Caleb and Joshua said, “the Lord will go before us—He will fight for us,” the majority didn’t believe, so they wandered around the desert and never went in to possess all God had promised.

The third way we advance is to take action. For the children of Israel, they had to take steps of faith toward the promised land God had given them. They took ground and territory for the kingdom of God. You may be wondering how you can take action and step out in faith. One way you can take action is by completing this devotional prayerfully, because we win the battle on the inside before we see the victory on the outside. Part of taking action is choosing to set aside a part of your day to renew your mind with the Word—with who God is and what His Word says about you.

At some point, we have to say, “I’m not going to stay at this mountain of fear, hurt, complaining, excuses, or bitterness—I’m moving forward in God! God, I trust You, You love me, Your plans for me are good, and You are working all things together for my good. I commit these things to You and believe that You are working!” As you move forward into the new things God has, you’ll receive fresh vision, fresh strength, fresh strategy, and fresh faith.