“Jesus answered him, go in peace; your son will live! And the man put his trust in what Jesus said and started home” (John 4:50; AMPC). This was the royal official whose son was sick. He went to Jesus to ask Him to come and heal his son who was dying (John 4:46-54). I love this verse, the man simply put his trust in what Jesus SAID and it came to pass. I think you would call that simple faith. Another example is the Syrophoenician woman who wanted Jesus to heal her demon-possessed daughter in Mark 7:25-30. When Jesus simply SAID, “the demon has gone out of your daughter” (v29) she believed His word and went home and sure enough the girl was delivered. In Luke 17:11-19 we read about the 10 lepers that Jesus healed; again, they simply believed what Jesus SAID to them, “go at once and show yourselves to the priest.” They were healed as they went because of their faith in the words of Jesus.

You might be thinking it was easy for these people because Jesus was right there in the flesh. However, we have the words of Jesus on every page of our Bible and we can still put our trust in every word that is written because God is faithful.

Are you dealing with an impossible situation as each one of these people were? Find yourself a “word” from the Lord that pertains to your situation and put your trust in that word. Keep rehearsing it and speaking it until you also receive the answer like they did.

In the book of Acts we read about the growth and spread of the early Christian church, driven by the power of the Holy Spirit. “And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit:” (Acts 2:4; NKJV). We could call the early church the “normal” church and nothing in scripture indicates that the church today should be any different. What did this church, as described in Acts, look like? (Acts 2:42-47; 4:32-35; 5:12-16; 9:10, 13,14). It was characterized by a great unity; everyone was in one accord. Wealth and belongings were shared such that everyone’s needs were met. It was a loving, caring community or fellowship. The word for fellowship used here is the Greek word, koinonia. This describes an intimate, spiritual communion between Christians and between Christians and God. Time spent studying the Apostles’ doctrine, which we find in our Bible, was a priority, as was prayer, praise and Holy Communion. In the early days of the church the apostles were the primary ones sharing the gospel and this was accompanied by signs, wonders and miracles and literally thousands of new converts were added to the church. As the church grew and spread many new local churches were established by apostles such as Peter and Paul and these apostles provided oversight, guidance, mentorship and encouragement. Small teams of elders were appointed to oversee, shepherd or pastor and care for each new local church (Titus 1:5). When we think of the growth of the early church above it is truly exciting to realize that we as Christians are part of that same normal church today! “For I am the Lord, I do not change” (Mal 3:6a).

The Holy Spirit was present and involved when God created the earth (Gen 1:1-2). The prophet Zechariah told God’s people who were re-building the temple that they would not achieve it in their own strength “but by My Spirit, says the Lord of Hosts” (Zech 4:6b; NKJV). In the New Testament we read, “Now all glory to God, who is able, through His mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or imagine” (Eph 3:20; NLT). In Acts 1:8 Jesus told the disciples that they would receive the power of the Holy Spirit; this infilling with the Spirit is described in Acts 2:4 and is available to us today (Acts 13:52). The Holy Spirit empowers us to walk in, “all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him” (2 Peter 1:3; NKJV). That same Holy Spirit will reveal God’s word to us and guide and direct us (John 14:26; Rom 8:14).

So often we can devise our own plans and try to carry them out in our own strength only to wind up frustrated when things don’t succeed. While Jesus was on trial before the chief priests, elders and council, the apostle Peter sat in the high priest’s courtyard and denied he knew Jesus 3 times (Matt 26:69-75). However, after he was filled with the Holy Spirit, he preached a powerful sermon about Jesus and salvation (Acts 2: 14-40). Wow, what an amazing transition. Do you get the picture? Let’s humble ourselves and allow the Holy Spirit to change, guide, empower and use us, the results will be supernatural!

There are 2 kinds of patience mentioned in the Bible; one of them is in relation to people and one in relation to situations. Colossians 3:12 tells us to “clothe ourselves” by wearing various attributes, one of which is “patience (which is tireless and longsuffering, and has the power to endure whatever comes, with good temper) (Col 3:12b; AMPC). This is obviously referring to people and the Greek word used here is makrothumia and it means being patient with those people who try us and offend us, being longsuffering and slow to get angry. This word is used for patience in the fruit of the Spirit in Galatians 5:22. (See also Heb 6:12, 1 Cor 13:4, Eph 4:2, Col 1:11, 2 Tim 3:10, 4:2 and 1 Thess 5:14.) Lord, help us to exercise this kind of patience with our families and friends.

The Greek word used for patience in dealing with adverse situations is hupomone which means not caving in when in trying circumstances. An example is found in James 1:2-3, “My brethren count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience” (NKJV).

It is interesting that patience goes hand in hand with faith; when we don’t get the answer to our prayers immediately, we need to wait patiently, in faith until the answer comes. It is patience that holds our faith steady. “So that you may not be sluggish, but imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises” (Heb 6:12; ESV).