to hedge a bet

Have you ever hedged a bet before? To minimize a loss, you bet on the flip side, to cover that possible loss. You may protect yourself from loss, but you also lessen the gain. You may not be gambling however, I wounder how often we do this with, Father God. We Pray to the Lord, and release Faith yet, we will begin to do things (just in case) to help things along. There are the obvious one such as, wanting peace, or relief from pain. We may turn to alcohol, pills, or any substance designed for that purpose. They of themselves not bad. I take meds for my pain. It is when we take them wrong, illegal or to excess. Yet, our faith can not be in them alone. For they will come up short every time. We must also speak the Word of God, 2 Pet 2:24 Christ carried our sins in his body on the cross so that freed from our sins, we could live a life that has God's approval. His wounds have healed you. Having done what we know to do, we stand. Then there are the less obvious, and as we are standing, we may worry because it feels like the responsible thing to do. When we are to be standing on the Word, and by all who observe, they see nothing. They hear the words, yet all they see appears wrong. We are brought up hearing, “actions speak louder then words.” Or, “don’t tell me what you have done, show me.” As we go through these times, we can’t kid ourselves, its very difficult. We must always examine our ways. Examine yourselves to see whether you are still in the Christian faith. Test yourselves! Don't you recognize that you are people in whom Jesus Christ lives? Could it be that you're failing the test? 2Cor 13:5 How do we know if we are failing the test? If, we are believing for health or finances, and change does not come automatically. Does mean we are in error? Most, if not all would fail if, that be the case. Yet, how can we determine we are on track, as we stand on the Word with Faith for those things? And, I need to stop right here and share something w/ you. The enemy tells me right now, “you are a fraud, what in your life points to a man of faith?” I image you can guess what else it may be sharing with me. I told you all that because, I believe it speaks to a few things. True enough, at this moment I may not be able to point to things as some do. Yet, what am I doing, I am sharing the Word of God. I answer the accusation as Jesus did. By ourselves we are not qualified in any way to claim that we can do anything. Rather, God makes us qualified. 2Cor 3:5 And that is what we are to do with each other, Encourage each other every day while you have the opportunity. If you do this, none of you will be deceived by sin and become stubborn. Heb 3:13 The enemy will often suggest to us why, we or even others are not successful. If, we listen to long to what it offers. We will find ourselves in more trouble, and bigger problems then when we began. Therefore, encourage each other and strengthen one another as you are doing. 1Thes 5:11 We have times when, we hear others share just what the Holy Spirit is leading us in. It will depend on our obedience to the Lord, if we accept these as confirmation. Or, reject them and see them as though we are being judged. It is much easier to dismiss others, as if they are judging us then, to see ourselves acting in disobedience to the Lord. Instead of, that course of action which, keeps us from blessed and drives wedges into our fellowship. As in 2Cor 13:5 we must by Prayer and a honesty look at ourselves, Examine me, O God, and know my mind. Test me, and know my thoughts. Ps 139:23 As Paul shared on in 2Cor 13:6 I hope that you will realize that we haven't failed the test. 2Cor 13:6 As we take these steps we will know if we are no track. Yes, we determine many things by fruit. From seeds planted to fruit enjoyed, their can be a lot of time. That is why, we Trust the Word God, scrutinize choices we make, what choices and why. Leave our hearts open to Holy Spirit, allowing an audit to reveal steps that need to be taken. In 1John 1:5-7...This is the message we heard from Christ and are reporting to you: God is light, and there isn't any darkness in him. If we say, "We have a relationship with God" and yet live in the dark, we're lying. We aren't being truthful. But if we live in the light in the same way that God is in the light, we have a relationship with each other. And the blood of his Son Jesus cleanses us from every sin.
As we subscribe thus, yielding to Holy Spirit. We will endorse the teachings of Jesus Christ to others, and of course our lives. The nagging questions, that doubt seems relents in asking, “are you on track, do you really Believe the Word of God?” It will be our actions, not our voices that answer.