How to Grow Your Faith: Lessons from Abraham in Genesis 12

Do you wish you had more faith? You can, starting today. Faith is hearing God's voice and taking a step in response. Abraham is called the father of our faith. He wasn't perfect, and he wasn't free of doubt, but he heard God speak and responded by going.

What is faith, really?

Faith is hearing God's voice and then responding to it. We often think of faith only in terms of big events like a miracle, healing, or breakthrough. Those are possible, but Pastor Marty Sloan reminded us that faith is mostly a daily practice.

But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.

Hebrews 11:6 (KJV)

For example, any parent knows the joy of telling a child to do three things and watching them do exactly that. It's rare. More often, kids do their own version, or quietly decide Dad doesn't know what he's talking about, and we do exactly the same thing with God. He knows everything, yet we still act as if we understand how life works better than He does.

Faith grows the way muscle grows under weight: each time the Holy Spirit stirs you and you take a step, your faith gets stronger.

Who makes the first move in faith?

God does, because faith always begins with God's initiative. Abram wasn't asking for a plan for his life; God spoke to him first.

Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will shew thee.

Genesis 12:1 (KJV)

Then came the promise. God would make Abram a great nation, bless him, make his name great, and make him a blessing (Genesis 12:2).

Abram was 75 years old when he left (Genesis 12:4), which means nobody ages out of usefulness in God's kingdom.

The same pattern runs through Scripture. God called Noah to build an ark. He called Moses back to Egypt. He called David, the prophets, the disciples, and Paul on the road to Damascus. Even salvation started with God coming to us, and Jesus told His disciples that He had chosen them.

So instead of asking, "What's my purpose?", try a better question: What is God saying, and how can I take a step?

How does God speak today?

God speaks mainly through His Word. He also speaks by His Spirit, through preaching, and through wise counsel. Pastor Marty admitted he has never heard an audible voice. He has felt God speak to his spirit many times. Sometimes a verse you've read a hundred times suddenly jumps off the page. That's the Spirit of God speaking.

The more consistently you listen, the better you recognize His voice. Pastor Marty can pick his wife's voice out of a thousand women talking, because he's listened to her for over 30 years.

One guardrail matters here. Anything you sense from God must line up with the Word of God. Too many people blame God for decisions that never matched Scripture.

Why does faith mean leaving your comfort zone?

God called Abram away from three things: his country, his community, and his comfort. Faith often requires leaving the familiar.

For example, Pastor Marty and his wife bought two matching chairs. His has worn faster than hers. Any place you sit in long enough becomes a comfort zone, and over time comfort turns uncomfortable. Many believers try to build a Christian comfort zone and then end up restless and doubting, because God is a moving God.

By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went.

Hebrews 11:8 (KJV)

Abram didn't get a map app with turn-by-turn directions. If God had shown him the whole route, would he have gone? Faith is trusting that God has the answers, then obeying a step at a time.

This isn't a call to be reckless. Pastor Marty describes faith as steps of faith, not leaps. A step of faith is a move that matches God's Word, has wise counsel behind it, and follows what you've heard Him say. Go out on a limb to prove something to God, and the limb can break.

Can you trust God's promises when they seem impossible?

Yes. If God said it, He will do it, though His timing rarely matches your calendar. Abram was old and Sarah was barren, yet God promised a nation. Humanly speaking, the math didn't add up. Still, Romans 4:18 says, "Against all hope, Abraham in hope believed." Faith doesn't deny reality. It believes God is greater than reality. The size of your problem never determines the outcome; the size of your God does.

You don't have to help God keep His promises to you. Pastor Marty put it simply: "God doesn't need your help. God needs your obedience." Your faith also affects the people behind you. When Abraham took Isaac up the mountain, Isaac was likely a strong young man. He could trust his dad because he'd watched his dad trust God. Fathers, you can change your family's direction by hearing God and doing what He says.

What happens to your faith while you wait?

Faith grows in the waiting. Delay is not denial. Abram got impatient and tried to fulfill God's plan his own way, which led to Ishmael, and trying to help God usually makes things worse.

Just because you can't see God moving doesn't mean He has stopped working on your behalf. In the waiting room, God builds four things in you:

• Dependence: you learn to lean on Him.
• Trust: you learn He is faithful when it's quiet.
• Perseverance: you join the believers who kept going through hardship.
• Patience: like muscle, it only grows under tension.

Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.

Isaiah 40:30 to 31

Whatever you give to God, He multiplies. One boy's lunch fed a multitude in Jesus' hands. The widow of Zarephath fed the prophet with her last meal, and her flour and oil kept coming.

For further reading, Pastor Marty recommends After Doubt by A.J. Swoboda, The Dangers of a Shallow Faith by A.W. Tozer, and Faith for Exiles by David Kinnaman and Mark Matlock.

Common questions

Why is Abraham called the father of faith?

Abraham believed God and obeyed when God called him to leave his homeland for a place he had never seen. Romans 4 presents him as the model of faith for every believer. God credited his trust as righteousness centuries before the law was given.

How can I increase my faith?

Faith grows when you hear God speak and respond with a step of obedience. Read God's Word, listen for the Holy Spirit, and act on what you hear. Each step of obedience strengthens your faith the way resistance strengthens a muscle.

What is the difference between a step of faith and a leap of faith?

Pastor Marty Sloan teaches that faith moves in steps, not leaps. A step of faith lines up with Scripture and wise counsel. A reckless leap that ignores God's Word isn't biblical faith, even if it feels courageous.

Why does God make us wait?

Waiting builds dependence, trust, perseverance, and patience. God is often working in ways you can't see or understand yet. Isaiah 40:31 promises that those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength.