Greater.  By Sophia Archer.

Faith in God did not seem like a difficult concept for me.  I always thought I had faith that God existed.  I believed that Jesus was the son of God, and I believed the Holy Spirit lived inside of me.  That seemed like enough…Guess what? It was not.  Matthew 7:21-23 says,

“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.”

From a very young age, I learned to do good works in the name of the Lord.  I followed my mother to the homes of shut-ins, I volunteered to help elderly neighbors, I always went above and beyond.

Why?  Well, I was a Christian, of course. I was a good person, right?

“Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in faith.  Test yourselves.  Or do you not realize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you? —unless indeed you fail to meet the test!” ~ 2 Corinthians 13:5

I failed to meet the test.  I thought I had this thing called faith.  I did not understand what faith in our God truly was.  My faith did not ground me as I was a “wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind” (James 1:6).  Certainly, I was not moving any mountains from here to there, or anywhere, and everything seemed impossible for me (Matthew 17:20).

The more I did for everyone, the more chaotic I felt.  I am pleasing the people, but why were the people so important to please?  I was doing the right things for the wrong reasons.

“How can you believe, when you receive glory from one another and do not seek the glory that comes from the only God?” ~John 5:44

As I meddled in worldly ways, I floundered in my faith.  I opened myself up to criticisms, I listened to other’s words against me, I explained myself, I tried to convince others of my worth, and when that proved fruitless, I broke.  I continued to go to service, and one Sunday, as I sat, wondering, where are You, God?  What did I do wrong?  Why am I feeling this way?  Just then, as if the pastor was only speaking to me, I heard,

“Greater is He that is in you, than he that is in the world” ~ 1 John 4:4.

Well, can I get a hallelujah?  My broken spirit was renewed.  My broken heart was healing.  God, the Father, God, the Son, God, the Holy Spirit, He was in me!!!  Matthew 11:28-30 says,

“Come to me, all who labor and are heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

While I thought I had faith, I never understood what it was and how to live in it.  No wonder I was weary.  I started to study the Word of God.

“For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.” Ephesians 2:8-9

By His grace, I have been saved! And so can you be! This is a gift that He offers to all of us.

 “I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” (Romans 12:1-2).

I live to please God.  I am who He says I am!  No more will I look for worldly approval.  I will seek our King’s approval and I will remember He is God who created this world, He artfully designed how the sun sets and rises, how the tide comes in and goes out, the bond of a mother to a child.  He is the same God who brought to us all living things, and He is even behind the best New York style pie ever!

“Great is the Lord and most worthy of praise; his greatness no one can fathom” ~ Psalm 145:3