Consistency is my goal. My walk and my talk should declare the same thing—that I have been with Jesus.
An event recorded in Acts 3-4 captured my attention. As two of Jesus’ disciples, Peter and John, entered the temple, a man who had been lame since birth asked for alms.
Peter said, “Silver and gold have I none, but such as I have give I thee: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth rise up and walk.”
Taking him by the hand, Peter lifted him to his feet. Immediately the man began leaping and walking and praising God as he went into the temple with them.
Then Peter seized the opportunity to proclaim Jesus. “And his name through faith in his name hath made this man strong, whom ye see and know: yea, the faith which is by him hath given him this perfect soundness in the presence of you all.”
Some of the religious leaders, “grieved that they taught the people and preached through Jesus the resurrection from the dead,” put them in jail overnight and the next day questioned them.
“By what power, or by what name, have ye done this?”
Empowered by God’s Spirit, Peter said, “by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom ye crucified, whom God raised from the dead, even by him doth this man stand here before you whole…Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.”
Seeing the boldness of Peter and John and perceiving they were “unlearned and ignorant men, they marveled, and they took knowledge of them, that they had been with Jesus.”
I wondered.
Have I spent enough time with Jesus that anyone notices?
Do I bear any traits that identify him as my Master? Does my countenance reflect his joy? Do my responses show his lovingkindness?
I wanted to answer “Yes!” to those questions…but I couldn’t…and that troubled me enough to send me on a quest for consistency in the everyday.
My personality-type being prone to highs and lows—bouncing from exuberant to melancholy—I needed balance. Somehow I knew “walking by faith” was the solution. But I struggled to understand that term.
Studying the Book of Hebrews in the Amplified Version gave insight concerning faith: “leaning of the entire personality on God in absolute trust and confidence in His power, wisdom, and goodness.”
That’s it!
Walking by faith is simply trusting God!
Leaning my entire personality on God in absolute trust and confidence in His power, wisdom and goodness produced consistency in my walk and talk. I hope it’s noticeable that we’ve spent time together.
“Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fullness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore” (Psalm 16:11).
© Dianne Barker 2018
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