True Faith

So, one really good aspect of being graduated from college is I now have plenty of time to read books that I want to read for my own spiritual nourishment, instead of being loaded down with tons of reading from textbooks for homework. I usually discover all the books I'm reading through recommendations from other people...at least that has been the trend so far for the five books I have read this summer. The book that I'm half way through right now is called The Secret of Christian Living by Watchman Nee. I don't really favor his choppy writing style, but his messages are filled with some heavy doctrine and truths. One illuminating short passage I just read through this week was on the topic of defining true faith. Nee states:

"Faith is not believing God will do it, instead, it is believing that He has done it -- not believing that God will heal, but believing that He has healed. Faith is believing that God has done all things in Christ. Today, I believe that in Christ God has done all; I accept what He has done as accomplished fact. This is true faith."

To me, this is an alternate perspective that I often don't have in my faith walk. I usually pray for things to come to pass-for healing, for sins to be washed away, for reconciliation, for forgiveness. I don't think it is wrong to pray for those things. However, Nee reiterates over and over again in his book that it is important to realize that all of those things have already been accomplished through Christ's sacrifice on the cross. I know that one of my weaknesses is having a pessimistic outlook on life, so I struggle daily with changing my attitude to think more positively. I believe this passage on faith is also a change in attitude and mindset, but it also goes deeper as it penetrates into our spirit. Our faith and spirit should tell us that through Jesus Christ, all of these prayers have been fulfilled and answered. The challenge for us as Christians is to fully embrace and acknowledge what has been given to us by grace so that we can continue to live our lives in the newness of being in Christ.