Standing Strong

There will come times in all of our lives when we will be tested in our faith. There will be times when what we believe will be challenged. There will be temptations to do the wrong thing.

We might ask ourselves, Will I be able to stand strong spiritually when this happens? That is entirely up to you. It isn’t up to God. It is up to you. God wants you to stand, but He will not force you to stand. He will give you all the resources you need. He will give you the power to resist. He will even give you a way out. But you have to cooperate. There are some things only God can do. And there are some things only you can do.

Only God can forgive sin. But only you can fall into sin. Only God can give you the power to change your life. But you need to be willing to have your life changed. You need to cooperate with Him. He is not going to force you to resist what is evil. You have to be willing to resist it on your own, then take hold of the resources that He gives you. You decide today whether or not you will fall tomorrow. The stand you make today will determine what kind of stand you make tomorrow.

When you are building a house, the most important time is not when you lay carpet or paint; it’s when you lay the foundation. If you don’t do that well, then all of your decorative additions will be for nothing. You have to get the foundation right.

Therefore, you determine today what kind of situation you will be in tomorrow.