Do you Believe?

Have you ever hit a dead end? Have you ever felt like there was no path forward? I once hit a dead end in the middle of nowhere without any cellular service. I was lost. I looked around and there wasn’t a person in sight. There was no path forward. I had to think back to when I first began my journey in order to find a new way forward. I had to believe that there was a different way to reach my final destination. 

The year 2020 is almost over. Take a second and think back to the beginning of the year. Can you remember where you were? Do you remember what your expectations were for the year? 

I remember people thinking of 2020 as the year that would provide 20/20 vision. Others were thinking of 2020 as the next “Roaring 20’s”. Still, more people believed this would be the start of a historic decade. 

My 2020 started at Passion Conference with some of my amazing friends, my brother, and my then girlfriend, now fiancé! We were at the Mercedes-Benz arena in Atlanta, Georgia and it was a historic gathering of over 65,000 18-25 year olds worshipping Jesus and studying His Word. 

All that to say, I remember how my 2020 started. I know exactly where I was when the clock struck midnight and the new year began. Why is that important? Because if we do not remember, we cannot believe. 

Obviously, there has been a massive interruption to how we all thought 2020 would go. No one expected for there to be so many interruptions, and crazy elements to this year. 

Amidst this, too many of us (myself included) have stopped believing that “in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose” (Romans 8:28). Too many of us have forgotten that the finish line will be different than the starting line. We have forgotten that in our time on earth, we will face adversity and experience pain. 

We must remember. For when we do not remember, we stop believing. My question for you is simple: do you believe? 

Maybe you feel like your belief is dead. You are beginning to ask questions like “does God hear my prayers?”. You are beginning to doubt God’s goodness. Ultimately what has happened is that you have stopped believing because you have stopped remembering the character of God. 

Falling into the trap of basing our belief on our circumstances is easy to do. Emotions are tricky and they can fool us when we are not careful. As we like to say at 1Word, now screams louder but eternity means more. Your circumstances are temporary, so fight like crazy to believe that the best is yet to come--because it is! With God in your life, you are destined for an eternity with Him, and no earthly circumstance can take that away from you! 

When you believe, you actually have the power to transform your perspective and your situation. Rather than allowing your circumstances to dictate your belief, choose to believe that you can make a difference in any circumstance! 

Remember, God is still good. No matter how crazy 2020 has been, this season serves as an opportunity for us to remember that God came down to earth in the form of a baby to set us free. Our choice to believe stems from His sacrifice for us. 

Don’t stop believing! 

Choose it. Rep it. Live it. [Believe] 

- Josh Lane