Topic: Your Faith Is Not About Your Feelings [RICK WARREN Devotional 9 December 2019]

BY RICK WARREN — DECEMBER 9, 2019

“It was by faith that Moses left the land of Egypt, not fearing the king’s anger. He kept right on going because he kept his eyes on the one who is invisible” (Hebrews 11:27 NLT).There is a strong belief in our culture that influences every one of us, whether we want it to or not: If it feels good, do it. But when you allow yourself to be manipulated by your moods, you are living your life according to your feelings. God wants you to live a different kind of life. He wants you to live a life of faith, not a life of feelings.

We don’t always feel like doing the right thing. I don’t know about you, but I don’t always feel like being nice to people. I don’t always feel like washing the dishes with my wife. I don’t always feel like stopping what I’m doing to help someone.

But God wants us to respond in faith, not according to our feelings.

Anybody who’s successful at anything ends up doing things they don’t feel like doing. An Olympic athlete exercises when she doesn’t feel like it. A great musician practices his craft, even when he’s tired. If you’re going to be a great salesperson, you make calls that other people don’t feel like making.

If you want to deepen your relationship with God, you spend time with him even when you don’t feel like it. People who have a regular, consistent quiet time with God didn’t get there because every morning they woke up and wanted to spend time with God. They got there because they woke up and spent time reading the Bible and praying even if they were tired or didn’t feel like it.

Faith includes pressing forward no matter how tired you are or how many other things you think you should or wish you could be doing.

In the Bible, Moses is an example of how to respond in faith, regardless of your feelings. Hebrews 11:27 says, “It was by faith that Moses left the land of Egypt, not fearing the king’s anger. He kept right on going because he kept his eyes on the one who is invisible” (NLT).

That’s how you keep going in faith. You begin to see the invisible. Only those who see God for who he really is can persist in the most difficult times of life. Only those who see the invisible can do the impossible. Believe in faith what God can do in your life, and thank him in advance for how he is going to it.

Why is it risky to live your life according to your feelings?
What changes might help you more consistently spend a regular quiet time with God?
What truths about God can help you persist in faith?