Having a moment-by-moment awareness of the Greater One living in you will change your life. Some people are sin-conscious, others are people-conscious, and some go through life seemingly unconscious! But understanding who you are in Christ and recognizing that the God Who created the heavens and earth lives in you will produce confidence, or God-consciousness.
First John 5:14–15 (NKJV) says, “Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we have asked of Him.”
Don’t Let Doubt Win
God expects His people to be courageous. We see an account of this in Matthew chapter 14, where Jesus (and Peter) walked on water.
MATTHEW 14:26–31 (TPT)
26 When the disciples saw him walking on top of the water, they were terrified and screamed, “A ghost!”
27 Then Jesus said, “Be brave and don’t be afraid. I am here!”
28 Peter shouted out, “Lord, if it’s really you, then have me join you on the water!”
29 “Come and join me,” Jesus replied. So Peter stepped out onto the water and began to walk toward Jesus.
30 But when he realized how high the waves were, he became frightened and started to sink. “Save me, Lord!” he cried out.
31 Jesus immediately stretched out his hand and lifted him up and said, “What little faith you have! Why would you let doubt win?”
Having a moment-by-moment awareness of the Greater One living in you will change your life.
Peter lost his God-consciousness the moment he looked at the waves. Once he took his attention off
Jesus—the Word made flesh—fear overcame him, and he started sinking. After crying out to the Lord, Jesus took Peter by the hand and said, “Why would you let doubt win?” (v. 31).
It’s worth noting that even with “little” faith, Peter walked on rough waves during a storm. Jesus, however, didn’t pat him on the back for that. It’s not that Peter needed more faith; he needed to maintain the faith he had. When Jesus told him to “come,” I believe Jesus expected Peter to walk with Him the entire way.
Peter could have continued walking on water if he kept his attention on Jesus. If only he had maintained an awareness that God was with him. Anytime fear comes in, we become less conscious of God.
There is a battle between faith and doubt and between faith and fear. Jesus was disappointed when Peter allowed doubt to win. The same goes for us when we take our attention off Jesus. The world may seem dark, but God’s children are still the light of the world! There are more people to reach and more life to touch.
Why do we let doubt win? It is easy to focus on the challenges instead of keeping our eyes fixed on
Jesus. Sometimes after accomplishing a faith challenge, another one arises; and we lose our confidence—our God-consciousness. Fear comes in and hinders us from doing what our Father has called us to do, and we begin to sink.
Acknowledge Him
God never wants His sons and daughters to sink. One way to ensure that we don’t is constantly being mindful of Who lives in us. How do we do that? By acknowledging Him. Proverbs 3:6 tells us to acknowledge the Lord in all our ways. We should daily express our gratitude for His presence and leadership in our lives. We are to look to the Lord in every situation and ask what He wants us to do. We have to turn away from distractions and turn our hearts fully to God.
The same Spirit who helped Jesus to be successful in His earthly ministry lives in you and me. He will help you to be a success as a husband, father, and son. And on your job, in your business, ministry, and church. He’s just waiting for you to acknowledge Him.
Author
Kenneth Estrada
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