Two Things You Can Do Right Now To Stabilize Your Faith

Earlier this week we talked about how when it mattered most, Elijah showed up and his faith was on fire. He stood against over 850 false prophets by himself. Deeply believing in faith that revival would happen in his nation. He diligently sought God, and he believed that God would send fire to the Earth and prove His presence. He also believed that God would respond to the people's spiritual alignment by sending a physical reward of restoration and renewal to the land. Through Elijah's strong faith, faith on fire, God ended the drought and famine. He brought rain and healing to their nation!

We can glean a great deal from Elijah when it comes to having stable faith; a faith that is not double-minded. Here are four takeaways from his experience on Mount Carmel that help us learn how to stabilize our faith:

1. YOU MUST BE WILLING TO SAY WHAT YOU HEAR

Then Elijah said to Ahab, “Go up, eat and drink; for there is the sound of abundance of rain.” -1 Kings 18:41 (NKJV)

2. REALIZE OTHERS MAY NOT SEE WHAT YOU HEAR (Elijah) said to his servant, “Go up now, look toward the sea.” So he went up and looked and said, “There is nothing.” -1 Kings 18:43 (NKJV)

3. NEVER FORGET, MIRACLES USUALLY START SMALL

Then it came to pass the seventh time, that he said, “There is a cloud, as small as a man’s hand, rising out of the sea!” - 1 Kings 18:44 (NKJV) 4. FAITH LOOKS AGAIN

(Elijah) said to his servant, “Go up now, look toward the sea.” So he went up and looked and said, “There is nothing.” And seven times, he said, “GO AGAIN.”

-1 Kings 18:43-44 (NKJV)

Maybe you’ve thought things like, I know God would do it for him… but I don’t think He would do it for me. Or I know that God would do that for that family, but I don’t think He’d do it for mine. We begin to think we heard God wrong, or maybe we missed something. Our faith begins to become double-minded and unstable, and before we realize it we are making God sick. Our faith should not waiver! Our faith needs to be stable and be a look again type of faith.

Here are two things you can do right away to activate stable faith in YOUR LIFE NOW:

1. Create a culture that looks AGAIN

Set the example. Elijah required those around him to look again, even though they continued to see nothing each time they went to look for a visual that correlated with what he said he was hearing. When you have a promise from God’s word, don’t be afraid to look again or challenge the people in your circle of influence to look again. Don’t miss your miracle by walking away right about the time it is getting ready to be revealed on the horizon.

2. Speak the word AGAIN and AGAIN

And Elijah came to all the people and said, “How long will you falter between two opinions? If the Lord is God, follow Him; but if Baal, follow him.” But the people answered him not a word. -1 Kings 18:21 (NKJV)

We learn from this passage that a sign of backslidden faith was silence. The people couldn’t even state which God they served. Meanwhile, Elijah was stating over and over, that he heard God’s rain on the horizon, so someone should go look again!

When you stop decreeing the Word in faith, it might be an indication that you are backsliding in your faith and the enemy is choking your voice. He wants to squeeze the life out of your voice so you will NOT speak the word of God over your life. After all, even Jesus stated in Mark 4, “The cares of this world choke the word and make it unfruitful.”

I challenge you to look again! We need to have faith like Elijah that is on fire to see revival in our nation and stable enough to see it through. And, if we listen closely, like Elijah, we will also hear the sound of an abundance of rain:

“Be glad then, you children of Zion, and rejoice in the Lord your God; For He has given you the former rain faithfully, and he will cause the rain to come down for you- The former rain, and the latter rain in the first month. The threshing floors shall be full of wheat, and the vats shall overflow with new wine and oil. So I will restore to you the years that the swarming locust has eaten, the crawling locust, the consuming locust, and the chewing locust, my great army which I sent among you. You shall eat in plenty and be satisfied, and praise the name of the Lord your God, Who has dealt wondrously with you; and my people shall never be put to shame. Then you shall know that I am… the Lord your God and there is no other. My people shall never be put to shame. And it shall come to pass afterward that I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh; Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, you old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions. And also on my servants...I will pour out My Spirit in those days.” (Joel 23-29NKJV)

We will all walk through what feels like seasons of drought and famine in our lives, but we must press on, pursue God, and stay focused on God in great faith. Keep seeking God with a diligent heart. Don’t stop looking again!

Something good is about to happen! https://youtu.be/vjLKClOF-Is

1. Do you have a relationship with Jesus? This decision is the first step in receiving the anointing in your life. If you are ready to give your life to Jesus, we would love to celebrate with you at 3trees.com.

2. Do you need to rededicate your life to Jesus? If yes, please connect with us at 3trees.com.

3. Do you feel God prompting you to take your next steps? If yes, BEGIN is waiting for you! You can walk through our ONLINE BEGIN class at 3trees.com/begin

4. Would you like to make a difference in our community? Join our captivate team! Visit 3trees.com to find out how you can participate in community outreach opportunities.

WATCH IT | DISCUSSION GUIDE| MESSAGE NOTES

Why Unstable Faith Will Always Lead You Away From God’s Blessings

God is up to something good!

Sometimes things look one way, but upon further review, there is something more to see. It may look one way now, but in truth, it is something completely different. When you take time to look at what God is up to from different vantage points in your life, you will discover that the spiritual perspective dramatically differs from what you may be seeing in the flesh.

Last week we talked about Israel’s distance from God spiritually. As a result, they were in a severe drought and famine, things were pretty horrific, and God had sent a prophet named Elijah to bring fire down from Heaven and prove to the people that God was unrivaled as the only deity. God also promised that He would send rain to renew and restore what the drought and famine had taken. When the people returned to God spiritually, everything around them physically began to improve!

If you missed last week's message you can watch it here.

Have you ever experienced seasickness?

Seasickness is a form of motion sickness that occurs when the brain can’t make sense of the information being sent from the eyes, ears, and/or body. So, for example, for some people, motion in a car, boat, plane, or even on an amusement park ride can make them feel queasy, clammy, or sick to their stomach. And, all of these physical challenges are a direct result of the brain not being able to make sense of the mixed signals it is receiving. The body appears to be on something solid, but at the same time, everything is going up and down.

Have you ever considered that God might struggle with motion sickness?

Forgive me for that play on words, but ponder this passage, “So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth.” (Revelation 3:16 NKJV)

In Revelation 3, Jesus was speaking to a church in Laodicea. He addressed people who are expected to be one way, but their faith is being manifested in an entirely different way. Jesus says I’d rather you be really hot or really cold, but this back and forth -- up and down faith -- is making me sick. Scripture tells us that He will vomit this kind of faith out of His mouth. It is a harsh but real visualization of how He feels about lukewarm faith.

How do we define hot faith? Or cold faith? How do you know if you’re only lukewarm? Most commentators tell us that it has to do with the intensity at which you pursue God.

James, Jesus’s brother, further teaches us that Jesus doesn’t have a high tolerance for anyone who is double-minded. What we know about Jesus is that without faith it is absolutely impossible to please Him, “But without faith it is impossible to please Him... and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.” (Hebrews 11:6 NKJV)

Stay hot and intense in your faith, because God rewards the diligent heart that seeks Him fully! When we keep going after God, keep enduring, keep pursuing, and keep seeking Him we are rewarded and blessed. In the book of Revelation, Chapters 2 and 3, Jesus is talking to churches and believers...people who already follow Him, and He is saying to them that we must overcome whatever is in the world. This is incredibly important because He knows there will be a fight, a distraction, a hindrance, and a battle. We must press through what the world brings against us, keeping our faith hot! If we can do this there will be a special reward for us in Heaven.

How are you going to overcome the World?

How are you going to defeat the enemy?

Through faith:

For every child of God defeats this evil world, and we achieve this victory through our faith. And who can win this battle against the world? Only those who believe that Jesus is the Son of God. - 1 John 5:4-5 (NLT)

And, God’s preference, the thing He finds most pleasing is when our faith doesn’t waver as a result of life’s circumstances:

But without faith, it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him (Hebrews 11:6 NKJV)

But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, driven and tossed by the wind. For let not that man suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways. (James 1:6-8 NKJV)

Straight up, bottom line, God will not bless anything or anyone that is unstable or double-minded.

Thankfully, we learn there is hope for all who do waver or struggle with stability in their faith. And, we get the life-altering lesson because of what the Bible teaches us about Elijah. He certainly had his ups and downs in life and even struggled with his faith on a very personal level, just like we do, “Elijah was a man with a nature like ours...” (James 5:17 NKJV)

But when it mattered, Elijah showed up and his faith was on fire. He stood against over 850 false prophets by himself. Deeply believing in faith that revival would happen in his nation. He diligently sought God, and he believed that God would send fire to the Earth and prove His presence. He also believed that God would respond to the people's spiritual alignment and send a physical reward of restoration and renewal to the land. Through Elijah's strong faith, faith on fire, God ended the drought and famine. He brought rain and healing to their nation!

I believe God wants to do much the same for the nations of the world in our time. He just needs some Elijah’s who are ready and willing to stand firm in their faith and set the example of overcoming the world!

I invite you to view this message, “Here Again” in its entirety at this link: https://youtu.be/vjLKClOF-Is

Here are a few things to evaluate in your life:

1. Do you have a relationship with Jesus? This decision is the first step in receiving the anointing in your life. If you are ready to give your life to Jesus, we would love to celebrate with you at 3trees.com.

2. Do you need to rededicate your life to Jesus? If yes, please connect with us at 3trees.com.

3. Do you feel God prompting you to take your next steps? If yes, BEGIN is waiting for you! You can walk through our ONLINE BEGIN class at 3trees.com/begin

4. Would you like to make a difference in our community? Join our captivate team! Visit 3trees.com to find out how you can participate in community outreach opportunities.

WATCH IT | DISCUSSION GUIDE| MESSAGE NOTES