The Joy of the Journey
Hope and Faith
There is a difference between hoping God will do something and believing God will do something. Both hope and faith have an important place in the Christian life. Hope looks toward what God can do. Faith takes hold of what God has said. Hope lifts our eyes beyond our present circumstances, but faith moves us to act on what we believe. Sometimes our prayers sound more like wishes than declarations of trust.
“Lord, I hope You can help me.”
“God, I hope this situation changes.”
“Lord, I hope You provide.”
There is nothing wrong with hope. In fact, biblical hope is powerful. Romans 15:13 says, “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing”. Christian hope is not empty optimism. It is confidence rooted in God’s character and promises. But God wants hope to lead us into faith. Hebrews 11:1 declares, “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen”. Notice the connection. Hope sees the possibility; faith develops assurance. Hope says, “God can.” Faith says, “God will be faithful.” Faith Moves Us to Action
Faith is an action word. James 2:17 says, “So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead”. Real faith does something. Here are some examples…
Noah believed God—and built an ark.
Abraham believed God—and left his homeland.
Moses believed God—and stretched his hand over the Red Sea.
Joshua believed God—and marched around Jericho.
Peter believed Jesus—and stepped out of the boat.
Their faith showed in their actions. You can say you believe the chair will hold you, but faith is demonstrated when you sit down. You can say you believe the bridge is safe, but faith takes the first step across it. The same principle applies to prayer. Jesus said in Mark 11:24, “Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours”.
Jesus connects prayer with believing.
Faith, however, does not mean manipulating God or demanding that He fulfill our personal wishes. Faith means trusting God’s character, believing His Word, submitting to His will, and then living as though we actually believe what we have prayed.
Faith Moves Heaven, and Faith Moves Us. James 5:16 reminds us, “The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working”. Faith-filled prayer is powerful because its confidence rests in a powerful God. When we pray for God to provide, faith prepares to receive His provision. When we pray for God to open a door, faith is willing to walk through it. When we pray for someone to be saved, faith keeps loving, witnessing, inviting, and believing. When we pray for revival, faith does not simply wait for revival to arrive. Faith repents, worships, witnesses, serves, and seeks God. Sometimes we wait on God to move while God waits on us to take the next obedient step. Think about the woman with the issue of blood in Mark 5. She did not merely hope Jesus could heal her. She said, “If I touch even his garments, I will be made well” (Mark 5:28). Then she moved. She pressed through the crowd. She reached out. She touched Jesus. And Jesus told her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well” (Mark 5:34).
Her hope brought her toward Jesus, but her faith caused her to reach out.
We must learn to pray and then move. Maybe it is time for us to stop praying prayers that amount to little more than, “God, I hope something happens.” Pray with hope—but don’t stop there. Pray with faith. Believe God. Trust His Word. Stand on His promises.
Then take the step of obedience that faith requires. Hebrews 11:6 says, “And without faith it is impossible to please him”. Hope says, “I know God is able.” Faith says, “Because I know God is able, I will trust Him enough to move.”
So pray.
Believe.
Get up.
Take the step. Because faith isn’t merely something we feel. Faith is something we live.
