Act!

Hebrews 11 (The Message)

 ^32-38I could go on and on, but I've run out of time. There are so many more— Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel, the prophets....Through acts of faith, they toppled kingdoms, made justice work, took the promises for themselves. They were protected from lions, fires, and sword thrusts, turned disadvantage to advantage, won battles, routed alien armies. Women received their loved ones back from the dead. There were those who, under torture, refused to give in and go free, preferring something better: resurrection. Others braved abuse and whips, and, yes, chains and dungeons. We have stories of those who were stoned, sawed in two, murdered in cold blood; stories of vagrants wandering the earth in animal skins, homeless, friendless, powerless—the world didn't deserve them!—making their way as best they could on the cruel edges of the world.

It is easy to sit back and complain about everything. You can complain about losing. You can complain about coaches. You can complain about playing time. You can complain about officiating. You can complain about the direction our country is going. You can complain about your job. You can complain about your life. As a matter of fact, people complain about all these things and more. 

Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel all decided to do something about it. They didn't just sit back and complain, they acted. The took their faith and put it in to action. They not only put their faith in action, they put their faith as the most important thing in their life. They sacrificed everything up to and including their lives. How much have you sacrificed? Where is your dedication?  Have you put your faith in action? I don't know to many people who have been confined to chains in a dungeon. I don't know too many people who have been tortured. I don't know too many people who have had to face lions, fire, or stoning.  Our society is more worried about complaining than taking action on our faith. Faith is not the center of our lives. Faith is on the fringe of our lives and we put everything else ahead of it. We complain about the craziest things. We have lost our focus on Faith. Take your faith, place it in the center of your life and ACT on that Faith!