Evidence of Things Unseen ~ 1

This sermon, "Evidence of Things Unseen", was preached on 18-08-13 by Pastor Damian Pickett.

1 Samuel 1:1-5

Faithfulness begins in sorrow and disappointment.
The darkness is scary, but children tend to be less afraid when holding their Father's hand.
It's easy to have faith when the light is on.
When dark times come, you begin to look for something higher than yourself.
God can change hearts, and it's usually the dark time that make us look up.
Hard times are a blessing.
Sicknesses and diseases remind us that we won't be here forever
It's very hard when you're in the darkness and you can't touch the Father's hand. It's then you have to begin to trust His heart. A loving parent will guide you.
It's at the moment when darkness and discouragement come, that faith begins.
Faith is not an ambiguous feeling that you hope something good will happen. Faith is not based upon a feeling. Faith is based on a guarantee.
Faith is when you trust what God says in spite of the consequences. Faith is where most people stumble at the point of becoming a Christian.
Faith is trusting that God is going to keep His Word.

1 Samuel 1:6-8

A mark of a faithful life is when family members do not understand or (although advising you with good intentions) make things worse.

If your happiness is dependent on another person, you're a miserable person.
We must depend on God.

Most of the people you see have a brave and smiling face, but carry the weight of the world on their shoulders.
Your circumstances seem earthly but they are not. God allows catastrophes in your life to give you opportunities to see where you are with your trust in Him.

1 Samuel 1:10-11

Pray honestly. Prayer is where your heart speaks to God.
When you depend on God, you take your petitions to God, not your demands.
A faithful life spends it trying to honour God.
When God gives to us, He gives us so we can give back to Him – a life of giving.
When you trust God, you don't lose out. He honours you.
If God chooses to bless us with more suffering, honour Him with it.
When you become a Christian, things will get worse for you. Satan now hates you. There will be struggles. But the wages for serving God are eternal life.

1 Samuel 1:19

The next mark of a faithful life is that God remembers them and honours the asking, the seeking and the knocking. Most Christians do it half-heartedly.

We don't stop seeking until we find. We don't stop knocking until the door is open.

Luke 18

Return the blessing, whether given, or the blessing of it NOT being given, back to the Lord.

1 Samuel 1:20, 24-28; 2:18-21

Last year's faith has to grow, because you should be growing. Last year's faith should not fit on this year's Christian.
The key to faith is staying invested in the things of God.
Hannah started with nothing. Zero. 0. She honoured God by keeping her vow and God trusted her with more.
A walk of faith is where we're constantly trusting in the Lord and walking before the Lord. We need to trust Him for what He said.

God wants you. He's not forced to take you.