The Lord spent time developing the faith of His disciples because He knew they would need Him to perform the tasks that were to come.

For more than three years, they attended a school of faith, with the Lord as their instructor and His Word as study material. At times, Jesus used verbal instructions, but many of the lessons were taught by example: He healed the sick, cast out demons, fed thousands of people, and calmed the sea.

At times, the disciples' understanding was slow or hesitant, but Jesus never gave up. He rebuked them when they showed a lack of faith, but he also praised signs of progress. His goal was to firmly establish their faith so that He could accomplish His work in and through them.

The Lord has the same goal for us: to increase our faith so that we can do the work He has arranged for us. God will entrust us with challenges and accomplish amazing things through us. But a small faith limits God's activity in the believer's life. He uses us only to the extent that we trust Him.

Faith is built by learning from the Bible to believe, and then being tested in situations that force us to trust God instead of our own understanding.

Suggested Prayer: Dear Heavenly Father, help me to develop my faith in You more and more. Like Your disciples, sometimes my faith is slow and wavering, but I also know that you don't give up. You desire is that my faith in you would grow continually. Thank You, Lord, for Your patience. I pray in Jesus' name, Amen.

1.    Matthew 16:8-10 (NLT).

Today's Encounter was written by: Rosina N.