The royal official said, “Sir, come down before my child dies.” “Go,” Jesus replied, “your son will live.” The man took Jesus at his word and departed.– John 4:49-50
“God, if you’ll do this for me, I promise that I’ll (fill in the blank).” Sound familiar? It does for me. Before I came to saving faith in Jesus Christ, often I would try to make deals with “the Man upstairs.” But I always needed Him to come through on the favor before I would commit. And sometimes He would, despite knowing that I never intended to keep my end of the deal.
Then came my decade-long battle with alcoholism that had all but destroyed my life. Finally on November 19th, 2018, I broke down and tearfully prayed: “I give up, Lord. I surrender. I’ll stop drinking, but I desperately need your help.” There were no ifs, no deals being offered; desperation had finally come. It was either get help or take my own life. And while I didn’t want to die, I sure didn’t want to keep living the life I was living.
The miracle wouldn’t come, however, without me taking the first step. So I signed myself into a drug and alcohol recovery center and agreed to stay for 53 days. It was there that my true faith journey with Jesus began. And every single day since has been one miracle after another. I remember when I couldn’t go longer than 4 hours without a drink. But I haven’t thought about a drink now in almost 6 years! God has been so good to me!
But it required me to become intimate with desperation.
Sometimes, God allows us to experience desperate faith… not to crush us, but to move us toward a deeper, more deliberate faith. Desperate faith cries out in urgency. Deliberate faith trusts God, even when the evidence can’t be seen right away. I can tell you that there wasn’t a whole lotta evidence that first week while I was in the rehab center. Nor was there a whole lotta faith at that point. But as the hours turned into days and the days turned into weeks, God was doing something wonderful in my life. When I left there, I was determined to live a life of gratitude for what Jesus had done for me.
Deliberate faith is not just belief in what God can do… it’s trust in who God is.
Today, whatever situation you’re facing, God is calling you to a deeper faith. Are you willing to take Him at His word and move forward, even when the outcome is still unseen? Trust that He is faithful to fulfill His promises to you. Take that step, like the royal official, and believe that God’s word is enough.
All to Jesus I surrender,
Lord, I give myself to Thee;
Fill me with Thy love and power,
Let Thy blessing fall on me.
I surrender all, I surrender all;
All to Thee, my blessed Savior,
I surrender all.
“I Surrender All” – Judson W. Van DeVenter (1896)
Former Blackout Artist 