Faith: Don’t Restart what God is Still Growing

5 - 7 mins read

What’s the saying, “you are not starting from scratch, you are starting from experience”. Does that apply as a follower of Christ? Is that enough to keep going back to the start? Does growth have room for us to keep restarting our journey?

Those are the questions I needed to sit on when I wanted to start afresh, take a break because something felt different, changes were happening, and I didn’t feel like I was in the right standing with God for it, that I could start again next year with more knowledge from my past journeys with Him and just before I wrote this, I went into worship and spoke with God about exactly where I am and He talked through scripture.

“Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see”. Hebrews 11:1

A little about what it means:

I am sure we have all been in a place where we have said to God or to ourselves, Oh, I will meet you again next year and start again in a different season because you didn’t feel committed, or you were in right standing with God. A part of you must have felt that you would be in a better position next year, or might have more to offer or nothing else, so less to sacrifice. That part of you might also feel unworthy to answer to the call, - wondering why you can't pray meaningfully, fast consistently, share God's openly or even why the fruit of the spirit seems to have dried up. Hard truths, real feelings.

Those feelings are no strangers to me. Would it be cliché to say that the devil feasts on those feelings, it is his favourite meal. When he senses it, he creeps in like a child when they smell their mother cooking their favourite meal, feels harmless, huh. It is no different to the devil; he will come steal you under the pretence that you can restart, that when you do, you know a little better. Just like a child, who would rob the meat from the pot, just wanting a taste but unable to enjoy the meal when it is fully prepared, as he has partially filled his hunger, is like the devil telling you can fill your hunger for God whenever, just take a little now and come back later.

It happens when God is cooking up something for his children, and the devil can sense our desire for it. He knows what we cannot see, and we operate on faith as Christians.

As followers, the waiting season or the season of change can shake our faith, the question of Am I worthy or, God, are you there?, can cause us to feel small, which can then cause us to go back to where we feel big but there is also another saying doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result is insanity. There is a reason you came to God, you were seeking for something bigger than yourself, and God has told us we need to be small so He can be big in that way, He can lift us up.

“Humble yourselves before the Lord, and He will lift you up” James 4:10

I get the words sound easy, and so was the choice when you first made it, I chose you, Jesus, I confess you are my Lord and saviour. The hard part is knowing that a choice has to be made every day. You have to have faith every day in every situation and season. It is easy to think Oh, I will choose Christ in 2026 or in a better season, or when you have more to give or less to sacrifice. You think you will know better, but the same roadblock will occur because your problem was never the route; it was your faith. You can change your car, or the time you leave the house, or even the map you use to get to the destination, but at the end of the day, if you keep going back to the house because of the traffic or the roadblock, you will never end up at home, which as a follower of Christ, we know the promise.

So yes, we might not be starting from scratch, but from experience, but if all that experience just limits your faith, are you in right standing with Christ? I would say the Jews were operating from experience when they saw Jesus, yet denied Him as their saviour. If we are honest, we were never starting from scratch, and we were never in right standing with God; we were starting from grace, which is the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, and we move with faith because of the experience, good or bad.

I understand your hunger, and it causes you to feel weak, but the same grace meets you where you chose God meets you now, and it is saying, ‘Don’t delay the meal God is preparing for you, stay in His kitchen of faith. It may feel hot, it may feel uncomfortable, but remember this — food is not cooked with the stove off.

Do not restart or meet Christ in a better season; this season needs to belong to Him. Refresh yourself on the promises, fall forward and get back up. A faith of a mustard seed is all He needs, but if every time it rains or a day goes by, you dig up a premature harvest and take the seed out and try to place it somewhere "better", you will never see the fruit of His works. It is not about our feelings, it is about His Truth and our Actions

 “He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion” Philippians 1:6

Closing Prayer:

Lord, keep me in your kitchen of faith, keep me in your road of Your will over my life, though my faith has come to a mustard seed, you said with that you could move mountains, with just that, so Lord move my faith to increase Your presence in my spirit and may the fruits of my spirit not miss its harvest. May I be obedient to your calling and delight myself in You. Amen

What is your takeaways? Where is your mustard seed right now? What will be your act of faith?