It's easy to have faith when we like the way we see God working in our lives. But when we don't like His answers (or He just isn't offering them), those are the times we see our true faith.

After Jesus' fed 4,000 people, Peter said He was the Christ. But when Jesus told them He would be killed, Peter argued with Him and Jesus called Him Satan. Peter flip flopped so fast he got two new names in five verses!

Believing in God's past goodness isn't faith. That's observation.

Faith is believing God is good even if the next phase of His plan is scarier than we could have imagined. It's remembering He is good when the scary part is actually happening. And it's relying on His grace to comfort us for as long as He allows the pain to last.

It's not easy. Not at all. When things really got hard, Peter tripled down on denying he even knew Jesus. And this is the man Jesus tasked with building the church.

I think He understands how difficult it is for us. But it's pleasing to Him. And that's all the reason real faith needs.

Paul didn't include "argumentative" in his list of the fruits of the Spirit, but Christians seem to add it from time to time, especially when it comes to non-believers. We are called to be the peacemakers, not conflict seekers.

Whether we are confronting sin, discussing interpretations of Scripture, or even the existence of God at all, we can get so fired up defending our stance that conversations turn into arguments. And in doing so, we misrepresent the very thing we are so passionately defending.

God has done plenty to prove His existence and has all the power to convict others of their sins and theological misunderstandings. He doesn't need our help. He asks us to show patience and kindness to others. This is how we represent the one thing He commanded repeatedly: His love.

Christians can be the some of the worst representatives of what we believe sometimes. Grace, forgiveness, mercy, love, humility, these are the qualities Jesus commanded us to show as His disciples.

When we treat others as we think they deserve to be treated, celebrate and applaud our own righteousness, and act like we know the one and only correct answer in every scenario, we represent the complete opposite qualities of Jesus.

We judge non-believers for not accepting the faith that we fail to demonstrate. What do you think Jesus would have to say about that?