Developing a Life of Prayer
Do you ever struggle with "a lack of faith"? Faith is not something we merely have or do not have. It involves a process of ups and downs, victories and setbacks, triumphs and disappointments with every passing day. That's because faith is an aspect of our relationship with God—a product of our walk with Christ and the constant, gentle influence of His indwelling Holy Spirit.
Every Christian has to wrestle with doubt, fear, failure and inconsistency. In a certain sense, this is the only reliable road to a true and lasting faith that can weather the storms of life. Even the disciples of Jesus ("men of little faith" in the Lord's affectionate phrase) had to find their way through this dark, discouraging tunnel. Just at that moment when belief should have come easiest to them—when the Risen Christ Himself stood before them on a mountaintop in Galilee—Matthew records that "some doubted" (Matthew 28:17).
So if you sometimes question, know that you're not alone; as a matter of fact, you're in very good company. Meanwhile, you can take courage in the thought that even the merest shred of faith—faith as tiny as a mustard seed (Matthew 17:20)—is all that it takes to elicit an approving smile from your heavenly Father (Hebrews 11:6).