I Need Help With My Faith

Hebrews 11:1-2 gives a clear picture of faith: “faith shows us the reality of what we hope for” and becomes “the evidence of things we cannot see.” The text calls faith more than a religious feeling or a wish for better circumstances. Faith is confidence, conviction, and character built on a real relationship with God.

Faith as confidence means there is something underneath a believer to stand on. The word assurance carries the idea of standing on something solid. God gives a different reality through hope, even when the situation in front of somebody looks uncertain. Hope is not a dream board where somebody puts faith in faith, trying to manifest a new life. Hope is more like a Christmas list, grounded in a loving relationship with a Father who knows, loves, and provides.

Romans 15:13 shows that God is the source of hope, joy, peace, and shalom. Joy does not mean somebody has to be happy about every hard thing. Peace does not simply mean the absence of fighting. God brings wholeness in the middle of a broken situation, giving a person a new perspective when circumstances do not yet make sense.

Faith as conviction means believers see the invisible God through visible creation and visible evidence of His work. The sunrise, the waves, and the world God made point toward His eternal power and divine nature. Faith also calls for a step before the bridge appears. Like Indiana Jones standing over the gap, a person often does not see where God is taking them until they step forward in trust.

Hebrews 11:2 also shows faith as character. Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, and Rahab were not perfect people. They were real people with real problems who needed help with their faith. Yet God made their lives examples because they kept walking by faith. A believer’s testimony is simply a story of God through testing, told with gentleness and respect.

God’s provision in a family’s sudden job loss, a daughter’s unexpected ministry position, a wife’s school job, and a move to Florida shows that faith does not require all the answers. God calls people to trust Christ for salvation, dedicate their lives and burdens back to Him, and take the next step of deeper faith. Faith conquers fear not by pretending fear is absent, but by stepping out with confidence in God.

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Key Takeaways

• 1. Faith stands on God’s solid reality. Faith is not confidence in personal ability, positive thinking, or a hoped-for outcome. Faith rests on God Himself, giving believers something solid underneath them when life suddenly shifts. God’s promises do not erase uncertainty, but they give hope a real foundation. [05:50]
• 2. Hope grows through relationship with God. Biblical hope is not a spiritual dream board where somebody tries to make a desired future happen. Hope trusts the Father who gave His Son and knows what His children actually need. That relationship gives joy and peace even when the answer looks different than expected. [07:41]
• 3. Faith reveals the bridge after stepping. God often does not show every detail before calling somebody forward. Faith takes the next obedient step while the path is still unseen, trusting that God’s direction becomes clearer in motion. Fear may still be present, but it does not have to make the final decision. [15:46]
• 4. Broken people can build faithful character. Hebrews 11 does not present flawless heroes; it presents real people with failures, weakness, sin, and hard history. God forms character through imperfect people who keep returning to Him for help. A tested life can become a gentle, believable testimony of God’s faithfulness. [19:33]
• 5. Faith needs continual help from God. Faith is not a one-time achievement that makes future struggle impossible. Believers need God’s help with confidence, conviction, and character through every season of life. Christ invites both first-time trust and fresh dedication when somebody feels lost, afraid, or worn down.
  
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Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [01:24] - Hebrews 11 and the Need for Faith
• [03:30] - When Life Suddenly Changes
• [05:29] - Faith Is Confidence
• [07:15] - Dream Board Hope or God-Given Hope
• [08:45] - God, the Source of Hope
• [12:04] - Faith Is Conviction
• [13:09] - Seeing God Through Creation
• [14:55] - Taking the Step of Faith
• [16:22] - A Job Revealed Through Faith
• [18:29] - Faith Is Character
• [19:10] - Imperfect People in Hebrews 11
• [20:16] - Testimony Through Testing
• [22:08] - God Provides for Jenna
• [24:54] - Confidence, Conviction, and Character
• [25:47] - Trust God and Dedicate Again

Bible Reading

Hebrews 11:1-2
“Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. For by it the people of old received their commendation.” [01:42]

Romans 15:13
“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.” [08:49]

Romans 1:20
“For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse.” [12:49]

1 Peter 3:15-16
“But in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect, having a good conscience, so that, when you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ may be put to shame.” [20:21]

Observation questions

1. In Hebrews 11:1-2, what are the two descriptions used for faith, and what does the passage say faith gives believers regarding hope and unseen things? [05:29]
2. According to Romans 15:13, who is the source of hope, and what does Paul say God gives to those who trust Him?
3. What visible parts of creation were named as reminders that point people toward God’s invisible power and divine nature? [13:23]
4. In 1 Peter 3:15-16, what attitudes should shape a believer’s answer when someone asks about the hope they have? [20:55]

Interpretation questions

1. Hebrews calls faith “assurance” or confidence in what is hoped for. How is confidence in God different from confidence that a person will get the exact outcome he or she wants? [07:50]
2. Romans 15:13 connects believing with joy, peace, and hope. How can a person have joy and peace during a painful or uncertain situation without pretending that the situation is good? [09:33]
3. Romans 1:20 says God’s invisible qualities can be perceived through what He has made. How can creation help someone move from simply noticing beauty to considering the Creator behind it? [14:10]
4. Hebrews 11 honors people of faith, even though many had serious weaknesses and failures. What does this reveal about the kind of character God forms through a life of faith? [19:57]

Application questions

1. What area of life currently feels uncertain—a relationship, work situation, finances, health concern, family matter, or future decision? What would it look like to place that area on the solid foundation of God rather than trying to control every outcome? [25:04]
2. Is there a hoped-for outcome that has become more important than trust in God Himself? How might a person shift from “faith in faith” to hope rooted in a loving relationship with the Father? [07:41]
3. Where have fear, a lack of answers, or the desire to feel completely ready kept you from taking a wise and obedient next step? What might that next step be this week? [25:23]
4. Think about a time God carried you through testing, loss, disappointment, or change. How has that experience shaped your hope, conviction, or character, and how could you share that story with gentleness and respect? [21:19]
5. Who is someone in your life who may need to see or hear a reason for your hope? What could it look like to speak about Christ with humility instead of trying to sound like you have every answer? [21:39]
6. Faith needs God’s continued help. What burden or part of your life do you need to dedicate back to God today, and is there a trusted person in the group who could walk with you in that step? [28:21]