Stand Firm in the Faith by Applying Four Stabilizing Principles
- Jack Selcher
- 6 days ago
- 3 min read
In 1758, Robert Robinson wrote, “Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it, prone to leave the God I love" in his hymn, Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing.
How can we stand firm in the faith when forces inside and outside of us try to rip us away from God? I suggest four stabilizing principles.
Stabilizing Principle One
The first principle in painful trials is trusting God’s control for our good. It takes humility to see it.
We do not have the lead part in this stage of life. God does. We only fool ourselves if our head swells because we have received some prestigious award, position, or praise.
Humbling ourselves under God’s mighty hand means submitting to Him who controls our circumstances. Nothing touches us without first passing through His hand. Even dark valleys of intense suffering are part of his master plan.
God is in control of the mountains and the valleys of life. Let us not doubt in the darkness what He has revealed to us in the light.
Stabilizing Principle Two
The second principle is to rest our anxieties by casting our cares on the Lord. It is hard. Sometimes, our hearts seem cast iron, and our cares are magnetized. We think we have cast them on the Lord, but they jump right back.
Casting our cares on the Lord requires humility, for we must accept that God allows our difficulties for our good.
We must trust ourselves and our troubles to the One concerned about both. If we do not, fear (unbelief in disguise) will sap our strength, imprison us, and paralyze us.
Stabilizing Principle Three
The third principle is to resist our accusing enemy, the devil. He seeks to undermine our confidence, silence our confession, challenge our beliefs, and sow discord among believers.
He often uses the destructive criticism of those inside the church to devour by accusation. We must resist the temptation to be his mouthpiece.
To do so, we must be alert and self-controlled, with the latter resulting from yielding our will to the Holy Spirit’s control (Galatians 5:22-23).
Stabilizing Principle Four
The fourth principle is to let God’s grace empower us. The one against us is nothing compared to the One for us.
The God of all grace will supply the help we need for every occasion. We are as strong as what we commit ourselves to.
If we trust in our strength, our lives will be fruitless and eventually go to pieces. We will stand firm amid earthly suffering if we trust in God.
God promises He will be present. He will intervene to make us “strong, firm and steadfast” (1 Peter 5:10 NIV). There is no “wondering” in those words.
God powers the fruitful Christian life. Let us not settle for a frustrating self-propelled life that does not satisfy us or benefit God or people. What is your takeaway?
See additional free spiritual growth resources for Christians.
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