Live by Faith

As we keep His Word, He has all that is required to bring His will to pass in our lives.
When I married Kenneth Copeland some years ago, I was oblivious to God, His Word and the reality that He wanted to have a relationship with me. My church background didn’t include being born again, Spirit-filled or anything spiritual.

My life in God began the day I picked up a Bible Ken’s mother had given him. Her inscription said, “Ken, precious, seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these things shall be added unto you” (Matt. 6:33). I opened up that Bible to the same chapter and discovered that God cares about the birds and cares much more for His children.

I thought: This is great. This is what I need.

You see, at that point I didn’t have anything—no stove, refrigerator or furniture. I cooked potatoes in a coffee pot. We slept on a rented rollaway bed. I had no understanding of God’s ways or His will. But that day I prayed, “God, take my life and do something with it.”

It was that simple. I had read a promise and believed every word of it. Though I didn’t realize what had happened, faith came to me and changed me forever. That was the first day of the rest of my life, and what a life it has been!

From the time I was born again, I was a student of the Word. I couldn’t get enough of it. I devoured it. I didn’t study to get something to preach—that was the furthest thing from my mind. I consumed the Word to have strength to live by and to receive direction for the rest of my life.

Now, almost 40 years have come and gone, and God has provided everything I have asked Him. Every step of obedience Ken and I have taken, God has increased us. Individually and as marriage partners, as parents and as ministers, faith has carried us through life.

Each of us must develop our own faith. In fact, the Word can’t talk to you from someone else’s heart. God designed it to be based on a personal relationship with Himself.

I don’t let Ken do my Bible study for me, and you can’t allow someone else to do yours. Of course we encourage others, but the purpose is to help them realize that they can enjoy the life of faith by receiving the Word of God for themselves.

When the time came for me to preach and teach, faith had given substance to my hopes and evidence to my dreams (see Heb. 11:1). I had living proof to share with people.

My life is that evidence. God makes a way in every step of our spiritual journey with Him when He has something to work with. Our faith—believing and obeying His Word—is what we give Him to do the job.

As we keep His Word and speak it out of our mouths, He has all that is required to bring His good pleasure to fruition in us. He gives us salvation, health, healing, deliverance, understanding, grace, mercy, wisdom and prosperity.

On that day when I ventured into God’s kingdom, I had simply said, “Lord, take my life and do something with it.” Romans 10:9 says if we confess Jesus Christ as Savior, He will forgive us of all sin. Today I realize that God has had a master plan for me, and He began to make me aware of it the day I accepted Him into my heart.

The same is true for you. Ephesians 2:10 tells us: “We are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so that we can do the good things he planned for us long ago” (NLT).

God’s plan is that your life be nothing less than a great adventure of faith. He has called you to a worthy life that will “fulfill all the good pleasure of His goodness and the work of faith with power” (2 Thess. 1:11, NKJV). You have a date with destiny, so live a faith-filled life today!