Child-like faith or deep dread…

Micah 7:7 “But as for me, I will watch expectantly for the Lord; I will wait for the God of my salvation. My God will hear me.”

This is expectant faith that waits with great anticipation for the goodness of God to be expressed.

The problem is that our lives are full of disappointments. And since most of us have had the unwelcome experience of loss and pain, we are weighed down by unbelief and wait instead for the “other shoe to drop”. Our sensibility warns us to ready ourselves for what’s to come, perhaps simply wishing to prepare our hearts so that we can manage the distress.

So, how can we cultivate an expectant attitude of faith?

Romans 10:17 “...faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.”

It appears that if we have the facts (or know the Truth), we will naturally obtain faith. The old adage that “you are what you eat” certainly holds true when it comes to spiritual food.

Romans 12:2 “And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.”

Instead of harboring in our hearts the lie that God is not good because bad things happen to us, our minds can be renewed by the Truth and we can be freed to walk in childlike faith. Then we will be able to honestly proclaim the goodness of God, no matter what the circumstances of our lives may be, trusting that it’s in those stormy times He so delights in sheltering us.

Nahum 1:7 “The Lord is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble, and He knows those who take refuge in Him.”