From my SM lisa. Law student. Really smart girl.

My question:

Hey girl,

Ask you ah, does the quantity of our faith matter? I know that there is a difference between having NO faith and having faith. But is there a difference between having a lot of faith and very little faith. Christ said that as long as we have a faith the size of a mustard seed it is enough. My mum told me that pastor prince said that how much we get from God depends on the amount of faith we have. Is this true? Since God says that He already has a plan for us, and Jesus said that when we pray, we should pray for "God's will to be done" ie, God already has a will for us, and all we should be praying for is for his will to be done. Since God already has a will and plan for us, how much or how little faith doesnt matter cos He has already destined things for us. All we need is faith to receive, but how much or how little doesnt matter? Does the have more faith, get more blessings, have less faith get less blessings which my mum said, still apply? Should we not be asking God for specific things since "your heavenly father knows what you need even before you ask" and instead use prayer as communication?

Gail

Her answer:

hey girl,
i gotta cancel dg tmr! sorry sorry! cos i gotta work for my mum cos she's outta town this week!

I think what Ps Prince said is not too correct - he makes it sound that we can control / determine what God is to give us based on our faith. wrong there. We are saved by grace, we live by grace. Grace is that undeserved. God will choose to give according to his will (of courrse, faith may be a factor, but it's not the sole factor! and God doesnt choose to grant answers to prayers via a formula!). There are non-christians out there who get healed, then they believe. then, how does one explain that? There must be a balance b/w faith and grace - and love is the most important of them all!

may i suggest, we should not be content with "faith as small as a mustard seed" - faith should grow as a christian matures. when we start out the faith, it's understandable that our capacity for faith is small. why i say that is - faith grows by practising the faith / living it out. And that's exactly what christians should be doing, and our faith should not stay stagnant. of course, our so-called feelings of having "faith" is the emotional/psychological aspect, which must be differentiated from the real thing.

faith itself may seem illogical to the rest of the world - for e.g. to be a gd leader, one must learn to serve? love your enemies? how do we know that this faith truly brings us joy/faith/peace unless we obey the Bible.

had a conversation with my Pastor yesterday. and i realised that all my pursuit of knowledge o'er issues like faith etc, well it's futile. it's better to be a do-er than a think-er!

But of course, we are human and there will be seasons of highs and lows in our faith life, but trials strengthen and test faith. but when you hit a low note, then how? will you still persevere in the faith? i think how one reacts in adversity / suffering matters alot. everyone's faith is strong when everyone's happy.

faith - must look to the source and object of the faith and reliability of these - namely the Word and the Person Himself (God). So, why should faith based on absolutes disappear in changing circumstances we go through. when we meet difficulties, our faith does waver, most naturally so. But the faith, as small as it seems, is still there.

to keep the faith strong, always remember what God has done for you in the past (we must always be grateful, dun be like the Israelites, who oft forgot and turned away from God). always keep praying (something i'm really want - a solid prayer life). study the Word of God and apply - this cements our faith. it's not what pple say about faith that matters, it's about the faith that ultimately arises from the r/s we have with God.

asking from God is a good habit. when we start to assume that God knows, the danger is that we may start to take things for granted. we ask because we need or we want. and when we ask, and God answers, we will be better able to know that He answered. This allows us to be thankful.

i've been pretty troubled o'er my blog lately. i think i've just turned it into a theological debating centre! sad. at first, it was quite novel and fun. but now, i regret! cos i realised that i dont want the theory half as much as i want the real thing. i'm afraid that when pple read the latest entry, what goes into their system would be knowledge... Knowledge puffs (as my Pastor said), dont want it to be like that. So i'm gonna try turning the atmosphere around and not go into unnecessary theological debatea as much as possible! i want the blog to inspire pple to experience God instead... help pray for this ok? thanks!
God bless,

lisa

It's a good ans. And praise God for giving me such a wise sm. Thank you Abba!
- posted by gail @ 7:08 AM