Believing Not Required

I've had a draft of this post saved in my files for months now. I felt inspired by the Spirit to write it, but until now, had been unsure of what it was supposed to say. I had only a very general notion and a title: Believing Not Required.

Last night, I was talking with a good, Bible-loving friend, and she spoke about a scripture with which I hadn't been familiar. As soon as she shared it with me, though, I knew that it was the foundation of what this long-lingering draft post was meant to say.

I've prayed and read and, of course, written frequently about believing God in the last months. I have found myself in a season of tutelage that has, I think, been God's gracious time to teach me to bring my own faith, my own believing in Him to a new level. What I believe He wants me to remember though is that my belief isn't a requirement for Him.

Now, don't get me wrong; we are commanded over and over again to believe in Him throughout His word, and our belief opens our lives to many of His gifts and graces, including our very salvation. But God, who He is and what He does is not dependent upon us. It doesn't hinge on me or on my belief (which, I must say, is a very, very important and brilliant element of the design!). Without my belief, God is still who He is. He still is His amazing, powerful, wonderful, magnanimous, gracious, glorious, beautiful God. Aren't you glad?

"True, some of them were unfaithful; but just because they were unfaithful, does that mean God will be unfaithful? Of course not! Even if everyone else is a liar, God is true. As the Scriptures say about him, 'You will be proved right in what you say, and you will win your case in court.'" Romans 3:3-4 (NLT)