JJ Reddick played in the NBA for 15 years, and before that, he was a basketball legend at Duke University.
Though he had a very successful career, JJ said he felt like his first two years at Duke ran together because of how hard it was and everything that goes with being a college basketball player. He said he had to make a decision about how good he wanted to be. There were times when he wanted to quit because he said he didn’t have the ego structure, confidence, and security to manage everything that was coming at him, and in those two years, he rebelled.
JJ said that his behavior was detrimental to himself and to everyone around him. Even though he was an All-American as just a sophomore, he said it was the worst year of his life.
At the end of his sophomore year, his coaches called him into their office and challenged him. One of his assistant coaches said, “You can keep doing what you are doing and you will score a lot of points, but the sad thing is, we will never know how good you can be.”
They put him on an hourly, daily schedule. He followed it and said he still has the sheet in his notebook, and he said that summer set the stage for the rest of his life. The rest of his career was regimented and routine-oriented, and how everything he did had a purpose and structure, and he said that is what ultimately helped him have a 15-year career.
JJ was having success, but he wanted to take the next step. His coaches gave him a plan, but he did the work.
Faith is complete trust or confidence in someone or something.
JJ had faith in his coaches, faith in himself, and faith in his plan. But faith without works is dead. It is not enough to just have faith. You have to act on it.
When we have faith and act on our faith, great things can happen.
In the Bible, one of the ultimate tests of faith is the story of Abraham. Abraham was originally named Abram and was a descendant of Noah, and he married a woman named Sarai. God came to Abram and said:
“Go from your country, your people, and your father’s household to the land I will show you. I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse, and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.”
God created a covenant with Abram. A covenant is a formal agreement between two people. God told Abram to leave his life and the people in it to go to a foreign land, and Abram did it. God came to Abram in a vision and said, “Do not be afraid, Abram. I am your shield, your very great reward.” (Genesis 15:1).
The Bible said, “Abram believed the LORD, and He credited it to him as righteousness.”
Faith is complete trust or confidence in someone or something. Hebrews 11:11 says, “Faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.”
Abram had faith in God, and because of that, he was considered righteous.
Righteousness is being morally right. Righteousness is responding in faith by believing in God’s promises.
Without FAITH, it is impossible to please God. Faith is the core, bedrock requirement of righteousness. This is God’s will for our life; that we are fully convinced that God is who He says He is, and that He will do what He says He will do, even if it doesn’t make sense.
In Habakkuk 11:11, it says, “Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior.
No matter what is going on around you, God wants us to trust and believe His promises, and if our faith is true, it will always, always show itself in action.
Have the right thoughts, say the right things, and do the right things at the right time and the right way.
The human tendency is not to believe, to not have faith, and to hang on to something we can see or feel. We want something more than faith and something tangible, but the foundational piece to receiving God’s blessings is in having trust and faith in Him, believing that He says is true, believing His promises, and then doing the right thing, as often as possible, with confidence that all things will work together for good.
THIS WEEK
1 - What does faith mean to you?
2 - When is it easy for you to have faith?
3 - When is it hard for you to have faith?
4 - Have you ever done something that you never thought you would be able to do? How can you use those moments to increase your faith and trust in yourself and in God?
For a Google doc version of this devo, click here: Abraham's Covenant
