Belief In God

Think for a moment about the consequences of believing or having faith in God if believing or having faith in God did not require any sacrifice. If believing or having faith in God was all benefit and no cost, everyone would believe and have faith. However, believing or having faith in God has a cost and because there is a cost to believing and having faith, the wheat is separated from the chaff. Afflictions and how you bear up under your afflictions tell God how much you love Him and how much you are willing to sacrifice for Him. Belief does not always bring blessings. Sometimes, maybe much of the time, belief brings great afflictions in some form or another. Obviously, we want a faith where there are no afflictions and all blessings. We want blessings but we must understand our faith also brings afflictions. Our faith brings afflictions because God will not feed our greed and ego by structuring our faith system so there is no hardship. As lowly sinners all, we all want the big payoff from God without paying in anything. However, your belief and faith in God will definitely require you to pay a price. Get used to it. Get over it. Glory in it!!! Your belief may require you to suffer greatly. However, if you expect your faith to not come with afflictions, your faith will not last very long. Strong faith weathers every storm of afflictions. Weak faith falters under afflictions. To be a true child of God, your belief must be strong. To be a true child of God, your belief must be stable. To be long-lasting your belief must rest upon a foundation of quiet power and inner strength, both of which can totally dominate every affliction. Most of all, your faith or your belief in God must be grounded in what you can give to God, not grounded in what you can receive from God.