How A Woman Can Have a Strong Faith
What does it mean to be a woman of strong faith? How can you get past hurt or disappointment? The stories of others can be a powerful testimony for us.
As little kids, we love stories. I’m getting ready to teach little kids about the Bible at church tomorrow night. I know that if I can start off with a rousing story from my own life, I’ll have those children in the palm of my hand. They’ll be leaning forward, wondering how my story is going to turn out.
But then we grow up, and we get all serious. That’s when we start stumbling in our faith and wondering why it’s so hard to believe in God.
Stories
Stories, I tell you. We never outgrow our need for a rousing story.
Jesus says to his followers:
Truly I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. (Matthew 18:3 ESV)
Children say, “Tell me a story!” With their imaginations, they enter into the story and believe it is real.
So if you’re struggling with believing God is who he says he is and that he will do what he says he will do, I’ll say, Oh yeah? Go read the story of David and Goliath. Go read about Daniel in the Lion’s Den. Go pretend you’re one of the Israelites, with the Red Sea in front of you and a furious Egyptian army on your tail. Go read about Jesus hollering for dead Lazarus to come out of the tomb.
Read Bible stories like you’re a little kid.
And stack some books on your nightstand that have pages filled with even more amazing, real-people stories that shout about who God is and what he will still do these days.
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Counting Grains of Sand
I have a ton of faith, and it’s because I never let go of my imagination and my love for a hero and a victorious ending.
That said, I’m going to point you to the latest book I’ve read. When I put it down, I thought, This is going into my stack of faith-building books. It’s called Counting Grains of Sand, by Natasha Metzler.
I picked up this book because I’m a pastor’s wife, and I thought it might be a good book to recommend to women who are struggling with infertility or who are adopting older children. Those are the main messages of Natasha’s story.
But I was not prepared to be so personally affected by Natasha’s incredible journey of faith. Now that’s the real plot. She so honestly shares the deep pain of not being able to have kids, but then God is always surprising her with unexpected encouragement and hope. And I dripped tears over the beauty of what God did with the adoptions in her home. Oh, my word. Somebody get me a Kleenex.
Solidify Your Faith
I do not recommend this book if you have a whole bunch of housekeeping chores to do, because it’s one of those, “Okay, just one more chapter” kind of books, until it’s the end of the day and you have to explain to your husband why there’s no supper.
But if you’re trying to get past profound hurt or make real decisions or survive impossible financial situations, then Natasha’s story will help put brick and mortar to your belief in God.
God sees.
God cares.
God has been at work in your future in ways you cannot even imagine, sister.
You know, God could easily just download faith into your heart and that would be that, but for some reason, he often uses one person’s story to build the faith of another. We need each other. If you take the time to read Counting Grains of Sand, you will grow in your ability to trust God. I know this because as I read Natasha’s story, I worshiped the Lord and felt my love and trust for him grow.
And now a question for you: What stories from the Bible or maybe biographies or autobiographies of followers of Christ have you read lately that have given a boost to your own faith in God?
With love from Montana,
