Take a deep breath. Really–close your eyes and take a very deep breath. I’ll wait…
How was it? Did you think about how your body felt, your worries or your to do list in that breath? Or did you experience a mini-moment sensing the depth and power of your lungs filling with life giving oxygen? Every breath, each moment of life giving oxygen is a gift from God.
I have faith those breaths will sustain me until I die. So if I have faith in the God-given gift of breath, why do I sometimes lack faith and worry about the rest of my life?
Faithful is my soul word this wellness journey. It’s a reminder to nurture my faith by continually learning to trust and live for Him each day.
As the apostle Paul reminds us in Ephesians 2:8-10:
God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. 9 Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. 10 For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago. (NLT)
God created us as His masterpieces. He graciously gave us the gift of salvation through faith. We did nothing, it is a gift. Just as our breath is a gift of God, so is our faith.
It is our job to cultivate that faith. To live the life He planned when He created us. Paul explains how to do this:
6 And now, just as you accepted Christ Jesus as your Lord, you must continue to follow him. 7 Let your roots grow down into him, and let your lives be built on him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness. ~ Colossians 2:6-7
My life is an expression of thankfulness for the gifts I have been given. The most important of those gifts is salvation through faith.
God has always been faithful to me. I know this, I believe this, I’ve lived this. I have faith and persevere because of the knowledge He is with me. Even if life hands me challenges, I trust in His presence and believe everything will be alright.
Hebrews 11:1 describes it this way:
Faith is the confidence that what we hope for will actually happen; it gives us assurance about things we cannot see.
I have faith my breath will come, I don’t even think about it. I have faith God is with me, I know it in my being. Just as my breath is inherently a part of me, so is God.
My breath is a reminder of God’s presence. Each morning as I sit and pray, I take deep breaths in and out sensing God and His gifts. I am thankful. It centers me, it stills me and I have faith He is with me. With the breathing reminder of His presence, any worries I have turn to thankfulness. It changes my perspective.
So, take a deep breath. Sense the power of God’s life giving breath and have faith.
God is with us.
He saved us.
What a miraculous gift.
For an even more in depth look at faith, see the new Bible study posted on the Bible study page.