It is with great mixture of emotion that I sit to write this blog post today. As far as I know, it will be my last, at least for a while. As of July 10th, only ten days from now, I will be stepping down as pastor of Living Faith Church; I trust that you will continue to visit the web site, however, because a fine younger man will be taking up this post. I'm sure that he will have many encouraging and viable things to share with you over the years.

I will miss you all! Pastor Eric Vernelson

Let me start by asking you to look at the following scriptures: Luke 18: 1-8, 2 Chronicles 16: 9; and Hebrews 11: 6. We see in these biblical references the importance of faith. Even a simple comparison of Hebrews 11: 6 with Revelation 4: 11 demonstrates that pleasing God should be the aim, the goal and the driving desire in the heart of all believers.

When we consider that man has no way of pleasing God apart from faith, we can see that faith is truly one of the most vital and essential aspects in a person's walk with God. From Genesis to Revelation, the scriptures reveal that God is on a quest, searching diligently for faith in the hearts of men. The history of man's 6,000 years of existence reveals that faith has been a rare and precious commodity among men, and one highly prized by God.

Notice how Jesus marveled at times when He would encounter a genuine faith in some person or some group. Remember how He often encouraged His disciples to "Have fa Iith in God." Through the ages more men have not operated in faith than those who have. Only a remnant of humanity has truly manifested faith in God. But with those men, God has been highly pleased.

In the first text, Jesus asked, "When the Son of Man comes; will He find faith on the earth?" Please notice that faith was a genuine concern to Him. The underlying foundation of faith is the Word of God: "Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God" (Romans 8: 17). But Galatians 5: 6 states that "...faith works by love." Ultimately the release of effective faith comes down to our trust and our confidence in God's love for us.

It is not our love for Him, but His love for us that energizes our faith. It is our recognition that He genuinely loves us and our trusting that love enough to act on His Word that He is longing to see. If we do not trust in, and believe, that God loves us, it will be impossible for us to demonstrate and active or effective faith.

Most teaching dealing with faith seems to focus on God's power, ability, and, hopefully, His willingness to rescue us, to deliver us, to heal us, to provide something for us. BUT most failures in faith are not due to unbelief in God's power or ability; rather, it is in our being convinced of His great love for us and/or His kind and sincere intentions toward us...His willingness toward us.

The question before us is "Which is the greater insult?" to doubt HIs ability or to doubt His integrity?" Certainly doubting His power would be the height of foolishness, but to doubt His Character, His integrity, His love and Desire toward us would be inexcusable and the epitome of absolute contemptuousness.

Every child of God has, or will encounter some situation in life that requires faith to overcome, faith not to be overwhelmed or to be defeated. In every one of those instances a choice to trust God and to act in faith will present itself. On many occasions in my life while facing those challenges, the battles never have been about His ability to deliver, to provide, to heal...it has always been about whether I believed He was willing. My struggles were never about whether He could, but whether He would. It was about my ability to trust in His love for me.

The real problem was that I forgot that He was not focusing of where I was, but where I was going...never at what I was, but what He had destined me to be. He never gave more than a passing thought to "now." He always focused on the end product. In all those times, His GRACE was working toward me and was working me beyond where I was. In my residual blindness, I often frustrated the GRACE of God...I negated the very efforts of God to work in me mightily.

We have a tendency to Judge Israel for its hardness of heart, its inability to see His great love and favor toward them, BUT all they knew and all they saw was a natural lamb, some natural blood and some roasted mutton. We have had our eyes opened to the LAMB OF GOD, the BLOOD that washed away all our sins...and we eat His Body and Drink His Blood...so that we have partaken of His ETERNAL LIFE.

We look at the Cross and see that the Son died, not just for us, but as us...and in that look, we see an incredible and incomprehensible LOVE for us...leaving not one shred of room for us ever to doubt His love.

John 15: 7-9, "If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you shall ask what you will, and it shall be done unto you. Herein is my Father glorified, that you bear much fruit, so shall you be my disciples. As the Father HAS LOVE ME, SO HAVE I LOVED YOU, continue in My LOVE."

07/01/2016 Genuine Faith Pleases God