Take the Risk of Faith

Faith Is an Act
These three simple, truth-affirming steps took this woman’s life and faith to another level: She heard, she came, and she touched.

She heard about Jesus. Perhaps she heard that He was the one who turned water into wine. Maybe she knew that Jesus delivered people from demons, healed a nobleman’s son, a paralyzed man and Peter’s mother-in-law.

Imagine this woman, walking down the road one day, just shaking her head and thinking: If only I could meet this man. If only I had an opportunity. Maybe my body could be healed. Maybe I could break out of this situation. Maybe Jesus could reverse this curse and do something in my life.

And then she hears the shuffling feet of a crowd approaching. Stepping aside because of her condition, she hears someone say, “Jesus! Jesus is coming to our village. It’s Jesus!”

In her excitement, she may have remembered the things she’d heard about Jesus. We all need to remember the promises of God in His Word. He promises He would not leave His people in sickness or sin, or abandon them in their condition, leaving them in the bondage of Satan.

She must have reasoned that God and His Word could not be separated. As she’s walking, she possibly recalls the words of the prophet Jeremiah, “‘”But I will restore health to you and heal your wounds”‘” (Jer. 30:17, NIV). Suddenly, faith began to rise deep inside her heart. She knew there was no disability or circumstance in her life that was impossible for God to touch.

Faith in her heart said, “There has to be a way out—a breakthrough, a solution—because I do not believe that God can love me and then sentence me to misery and bondage. He is not that kind of God.”

The apostle Paul wrote: “Faith comes from hearing the message and the message is heard through the Word of God” (Rom. 10:17). It’s time for us to hear the Word of the Lord, too. It’s time for our faith to arise.

Because God and His Word are aligned, we are going to see breakthroughs. God has given us power and authority over Satan, over the spirit of infirmity and every problem that comes our way.

The outcast, as she was known, believed Jesus could transform her circumstances. And with faith arising in her heart, she believed He would. Jesus said, “‘The one who comes to Me I will by no means cast out'” (John 6:37, NKJV). Her healing began with her hearing, and based on what she heard, she took the second step toward complete restoration.

She came to Jesus. In fact, she could not stay away. Despite being told by her culture that she was an outcast, an unclean woman, she chose to come to Him. She dared to believe that the God of heaven and Earth could alter her situation, and that she would no longer be bound by circumstances, by society, or religious laws and traditions.

Coming to Jesus required, as The Message says, “a risk of faith.” She put her faith into action and dared to believe that when she came, she would not be rejected.

Faith led her to brave the crowd and come against the social and religious constraints of her day. She broke away from everything and followed what she knew God would honor—her faith.

When Jesus told the woman in Mark 5:34, “‘You’re healed and whole,'” the Greek word for “healed” is sozo, which means a number of things, including “saved.” He told her that there was more than physical healing available to her. There was also wholeness, provision and restoration.

When you prayed the sinner’s prayer and stepped into the kingdom of God, you believed that God made you whole—body, soul and spirit. You took a risk of faith. The faith you needed for salvation is the same faith you need for deliverance and healing. Believe for your total restoration because God hears your prayers, forgives sins and saves completely.

Just as you did when you were converted, confess with your mouth that the destiny God has for you is yours, and that the Word of God will bear fruit in your life and ministry. Establish your belief in the authority of God’s Word and claim His promises. He will restore you and everything the enemy has stolen.

The outcast had heard of Jesus and made her way to Him. Only one thing remained. The Scripture says: “She was thinking to herself, ‘If I can put a finger on His robe, I can get well'” (Mark 5:29).

She touched Jesus. Let me give you my short definition of faith: Faith is the hand that touches God. Luke 6:19 says, “And the people all tried to touch Him, because power was coming from Him and healing them all” (NIV).

This word “touch” doesn’t mean a light brushing. When the woman reached Jesus, she wasn’t wanting to examine His robe to see what kind of fabric it was.

She must have been remembering the desperation of her life, all the limitations and the misery her family had gone through. And she grabbed onto Jesus because she knew that with one touch the power of God would be released to her and change her destiny.

This woman—this outcast—touched Jesus and was sent on her way, healed and whole. She was no longer boxed in by sickness and religious traditions.

Today, God’s power to deliver is just as real for you. Whether it is sickness or systems, the moment you touch Jesus, a surge of His power will wash over you and break the shackles that bind your body, mind and spirit.

Declare What God Declares
The apostle John said, “For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil (1 John 3:8, NKJV). The bondages that limit you and stop you from walking in obedience to God’s will are the works of the devil that Jesus came to destroy.

We have absolute authority to speak to our conditions. We can tell the chains to break and the doors around us to unlock in the name of Jesus! (See Matt. 16:19.) God and His Word are aligned and cannot be separated. Don’t be a victim any longer. Lift your hands in victory and declare, according to the Word of God, “I break a fatalistic mentality off of my life, in Jesus’ name!”

Are you ready to break out of your limitations? Are you ready to be healed and restored? Then hear His Word to you: “Daughter, take a risk of faith. Your faith will restore you.” You are not destined to stay in your circumstances when the God of the breakthrough—your God—is with you.

Naomi Dowdy is a widely respected global leader and apostolic strategist.