| Romans 10:16-17 "But not all the Israelites accepted the good news. For Isaiah says, 'Lord, who has believed our message?' Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word about Christ." The original text for verse 17 is: "Faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of God."The first half of this sentence refers to our attitude towards God's word. Faith comes from hearing God's message. The "message" here is not only the message from the podium on Sunday, but also the message God sends to us at different times in different ways. If you want to get faith through God's word, you have to have the right attitude towards His message first. Firstly, you have to have the willingness. If we want to find out what others say, we have to listen first. If you don't want to listen, no matter how much others say, they are just wasting their breath. Likewise, when God wants to talk to us sometimes, He will do so through circumstances, other people or special gathering. How pitiful it is that we often turn a deaf ear and become indifferent, so it is very hard for God's word to enter into us. Secondly, we need to focus. The willingness to listen is not enough. If you really want to hear the message, you have to focus. Some people can't hear not because they don't want to listen, they are just distracted with their busy schedule. In the parable of sowing the seeds, Jesus said that people's hearts are just like different kind of soil. God's word is the seeds sowed. Some seeds fall on rocky place, which stands for the stubbornness of people. If they are unwilling to listen, the seeds will not be able to grow. Some seeds fall on shallow soil with choking thorns, which stand for persecutions, sufferings, temptations of the lust and deceitfulness of the wealth, in the end they will not be able to grow. But those seeds that fall on good soil, which stands for those who are focused on hearing the message, can produce a crop, yielding a hundred times what was sown. So at the end of this parable, Jesus says: "You need to be careful of how you listen." Thirdly, you need to wait on the Holy Spirit to work inside us and bless us with God's promise. We need to have the earnest desire for the leading of the Spirit, and the patience to wait on, until He puts the assurance in our heart. Once we have the special assurance from God, we will become faithful naturally in our life. What options are you facing right now in your life? Maybe you just found out life is like a heavy fog, in which you are eager to get the direction for the future. May the Lord help you to listen to God's word and wait on Him until God's promise for you is fulfilled. Pray with Pastor Tong Liu 
Lord, may you give us the willingness to listen, the ability to focus, and the right mentality to wait on. May your Spirit work among us until your promise for us is fulfilled. We thank you and we pray in the victorious name of Jesus, amen!
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