Obedience Leads To Deep Faith
One of the hard things about Alaska is that our hunting and fishing seasons are so short that you are forced to choose between good options. This is why I don't fish Coho (Silver) salmon or hunt ducks in September. Getting a moose or caribou has always been higher priority. But one year when my parents were visiting us in Copper River, I had all of my meat in the freezer early enough to fish. My dad and I went to Valdez to fish Silvers. They were jumping everywhere, but try as we might, we didn't have a single strike. After one long cast, my line got all tangled up in my reel. By the time I got it untangled, my lure had dropped all the way to the bottom. I had barely started to reel it in when a fish hit hard. I said, "Dad, they're on the bottom!"
Within an hour we had landed our limit- 12 beautiful fish. Think about that for a moment. The fish were jumping everywhere on the surface, but they were feeding much deeper. The activity that we saw on the surface was actually evidence of deeper life. The same thing is true in our spiritual lives. As a general rule, when we see believers actively sharing their faith, actively serving their church and others, actively praying and studying their Bibles, that surface activity is evidence of a faith that is much deeper. This 'deepening' of our faith is a never- ending cycle.
As we are obedient to Christ, our faith grows deeper. As our faith grows deeper, we desire and practice greater obedience- which leads us deeper still. If there is no spiritual life ON the surface, there is rarely much life BELOW the surface. So- when people look at you, is evidence of your faith visible? Do they see a person utterly committed to Christ? Do they experience love and generosity and kindness and encouragement from you? They should. Remember, OBEDIENCE leads to DEEP FAITH. Be blessed! -Pastor Brad
My dad, John Rud, with our limit of silvers.
Written on July 16, 2026
Posted in Daily Devotions