Today’s 333 Devotional: “Staying by Faith”

“By faith he dwelt in the land of promise as in a foreign country, dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise; for he waited for the city which has foundations, whose builder and maker is God.” (Hebrews 11:9-10)

Abraham by faith dwelt in the land, even though it was foreign to him. But the Promise Land didn’t look all that promising as Abraham experienced several famines where he left seeking better living conditions. But God always brought him back.

So, how was he able to stay by faith? But let me say that sometimes it’s easier to go than to stay. When we are confronted with unpleasantness, the first thing we want to do is to leave.

But what gave Abraham the faith to stay? The writer of Hebrews gives us the answer. And that is, he built his present upon the foundation of the future.

Normally, we build upon the foundation of the past, which involves both the good and the bad. But faith demands that we build upon the foundation of what God is going to do, not only what He has done.

The Lord said to Abraham, “To your descendants I will give this land.” (Genesis 12:7)

And so, while at the present it didn’t look all that promising, it was for the future generations that Abraham stayed.

The writer of Hebrews said that Jesus looked forward to what was going to happen after the cross (Hebrews 12:2).

We must never build upon the past, or the uncertainties of our present, but rather upon the foundation of Jesus Christ and the awesome future He has in store for us.

And so, while we may be going through tough times wondering if there’s anything to hold on to, there is, and that is God’s promises, because God is great and will do great things in the midst of the trouble, plus, we have eternity in heaven to look forward to.