When Faith Gets Stuck: Moving Beyond the Mirror

Fast forward with me to January 2027. Where do you hope to be? Who do you hope to be?

Here's the thing: The answers to those questions are actually formulated in the decisions that we make today. Your future isn't shaped by one big moment—it's formed by your habits, your direction, and your decisions.

Grace Gets You Started, Growth Happens Next

Let me be clear from the start: A relationship with Jesus begins with knowing and experiencing the grace of God. As Paul writes in Ephesians 2:8-9, "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast."

To know Jesus is to accept God's grace by placing our faith in him. And when grace is the starting point, you know that learning and growing aren't about earning something, they are about becoming someone.

But here's my encouragement today: Saying Yes to Jesus is the starting point, not the finish line.

The Mirror That Changes Everything

James, the brother of Jesus, gets straight to the point about this. In James 1:22, he writes, "But don't just listen to God's word. You must do what it says. Otherwise, you are only fooling yourselves."

Notice what James does here—he says "don't just listen." In other words, listening is the bare minimum. You should be doing that. But you shouldn't stop there.

Knowing is not the same thing as doing. Knowing is the first half, and doing comes next. When you only know and do not do, James says, "you are fooling yourselves."

James continues with a powerful illustration in James 1:23-24: "For if you listen to the word and don't obey, it is like glancing at your face in a mirror. You see yourself, walk away, and forget what you look like."

Now, this might be hard for us to imagine, but when James was writing, mirrors were not widely available, and a good mirror was a precious commodity. First-century mirrors were made of polished bronze or metal. For many people, seeing their reflection at all was uncommon. So, the idea of seeing your reflection would be a treat, something you wouldn't soon forget.

James underscores his point with absurdity. When you finally saw your reflection, the image would be locked in, it would be something you wouldn't soon forget.

When Faith Becomes Real

James is clear, listening should lead to obeying. Our doing isn't about earning God's grace it's about responding to God's grace. Authentic faith is always active.

Real faith takes what we know…and turns it into what we do. That's because faith isn't just believing something is true, it's trusting enough to act.

If faith never shows up in our choices, our priorities, our relationships…it hasn't finished its work yet.

The Power of Generous Living

Let me share something personal. When Rebekah and I first got married, we made a decision. Actually, it was Rebekah who was very direct. When we get paid, we will tithe. Following 1 Corinthians 16:2, "On the first day of each week, you should each put aside a portion of the money you have earned."

And we gave. Every time we got paid, we gave. Through job changes, kids, and medical bills that took our savings account to zero in no time, we kept giving. Why? We know the difference that generosity makes. It helps you keep your eyes on the right things.

Generosity trains our hearts to rely on God rather than on our things.

Putting Faith Into Action

I think the key to getting this right is balance. Knowing and experiencing God's love deeply AND making a point to line up my living with God's way of thinking.

The Five Practices that show up in growing disciples are: Praying, Growing, Giving, Serving, and Inviting. Prayer is where we stop talking about God and start talking to God. As Philippians 4:6 reminds us, "Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything.”

Next Steps: Moving Beyond the Mirror

These aren't hoops. They aren't a secret sauce. They are practices. And for many of us, one step of action unlocks growth that years of listening never produced.

My prayer for you is that you will live in faith and that your faith will transform your life. I truly believe that authentic faith is always active.

Remember: Being in church doesn't make you a follower of Jesus any more than being in a garage makes you a car. We fool ourselves when we allow proximity to be our goal.

Where will you start today?