Increasing our faith can be a rewarding and transformative journey that allows us to find greater meaning and purpose in our lives. It can also help us to develop greater resilience and inner strength, enabling us to navigate the challenges and uncertainties.
Matthew 6:9-13, says, “This, then, is how you should pray: Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.”
In this model prayer taught by Jesus, there are principles that can turn into habits and can also increase our faith if we practice them consistently.
To Increase our Faith, learn the habit of GLORIFYING GOD
The phrase “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name” implies a statement of worship directly address to God. It is giving all glory to God. Glorifying God refers to acknowledging and magnifying the greatness, goodness, and holiness of God. It can involve praising God for His attributes and actions, giving thanks for His blessings, and recognizing His sovereignty over all creation. Glorifying God can also involve living a life that reflects His values and character.
In order for our faith to grow and increase, we must practice the habit of worshiping and glorifying God. Worshiping God for who He is refers to acknowledging and honoring His divine nature and character, rather than just for what He has done for us or what we hope to receive from Him. It involves recognizing that God is the creator and sustainer of all things and that He is worthy of our reverence and adoration simply because of who He is.
To Increase our Faith, learn the habit of SUBMITTING TO HIS RULERSHIP
Another way to increase our faith is to submit to God’s rulership. We can also learn a portion from the model prayer taught by Jesus that says, “Your Kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.”
Submitting to God’s rulership means acknowledging God as the ultimate authority in our lives and making a conscious choice to follow His will and guidance. It involves recognizing that God has a plan and purpose for our lives and that He knows what is best for us.
Submitting to God’s rulership requires us to let go of our own desires, plans, and ambitions, and to surrender our will to His. It means trusting that God’s ways are higher than our ways and that He has our best interests at heart.
In practical terms, submitting to God’s rulership involves living in accordance with His values and teachings, and seeking to honor Him in all that we do. It means prioritizing our relationship with God above all else and striving to serve Him through acts of love, kindness, and compassion toward others.
While submitting to God’s rulership may require us to make sacrifices and face challenges, it can also bring a sense of peace, purpose, and fulfillment to our lives. By placing our trust in God and seeking to live in alignment with His will, we can experience a deeper sense of connection and intimacy with Him.
To Increase our Faith, learn the habit of TRUSTING FOR HIS PROVISION
Jesus also taught His followers to ask. It is called a petition. It says in Matthew 6:11, “Give us this day our daily bread.”
Trusting God for His provision means having faith that God will provide for our needs, both material and spiritual, according to His will and timing. It involves recognizing that God is the source of all good things and that He cares for us deeply.
Trusting God for His provision requires us to let go of our worries and anxieties, and to rely on God’s faithfulness and goodness. It means acknowledging that we are not in control of our lives and circumstances and that God has a plan and purpose for us that is greater than our own understanding. In practical terms, trusting God for His provision involves living with a sense of gratitude and contentment, and being wise stewards of the resources that God has entrusted to us.
The word “daily” indicates that God wants us to trust in Him and for His provision every moment of our life.
Related Post: Achieving Both Spiritual and Material Abundance
To Increase our Faith, learn the habit of CONFESSING OUR SINS
Jesus continued teaching the model prayer and said, “And forgive us our debts…” The word “debts” is also translated as trespass.
There are two kinds of confession: confessing for repentance and confessing for restoration. When we accepted the Lord as our personal Lord and Savior, we also ask for forgiveness. It is the repentance from being a sinner. Confessing for restoration is the prayer for the believer after committing a sin. Learn the habit of confessing our sins every time we commit mistakes and trespasses.
To Increase our Faith, learn the habit of FORGIVING OTHERS
Jesus also taught us that we should forgive our debtors. It means we need to forgive those who sinned against us. The way to increase our faith is to develop the habit of forgiving others.
Forgiving others involves extending grace and compassion to those who have wronged us. Forgiveness is rooted in the belief that we are all imperfect and in need of God’s mercy and forgiveness and that extending forgiveness to others is an act of love and humility.
Forgiveness involves choosing to let go of our feelings of anger, resentment, and bitterness toward those who have hurt us. It means choosing to release the other person from their debt to us, and to no longer hold their actions against them.
Forgiveness is viewed as an essential component of our own spiritual growth and well-being. By choosing to forgive others, we are able to experience a sense of freedom and release from the burdens of anger and bitterness. We are also able to cultivate a spirit of compassion and empathy towards others and to live in greater harmony with those around us.
To Increase our Faith, learn the habit of FIGHTING THE RIGHT BATTLE
This part of the model prayer, “And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from the evil one” indicates that we are in a battle. Another way to increase our faith is the readiness to fight the right battle. We are at war every day because there is an enemy, the evil one – Satan. We must fight the right battle.
Another way to increase our faith is to rely on God, as He helps us fight the battle against the enemy. We are victorious because Jesus already won the battle.
