Manifesting.....

Our culture as you know has no shortage of popular trends. One such trend I have noticed that is gaining increasing traction, especially among the youth is the concept of manifesting. What is it?

Psychology Today says "Manifesting is the idea that, through the power of belief, we can effectively "think" a goal into becoming reality. It's a form of "magical thinking," or the need to believe that one’s hopes and desires can have an effect on how the world turns. The general concept of manifesting is centuries old but has gained new adherents in recent years.."

I encountered this recently when I overheard a high school girl mention that she was interested in a boy at her school. She continued by declaring with absolute certainty that he would be her boyfriend but "he just doesn't know it yet.". My wife and I have worked with youth for years and I knew this particular girl had been dabbling a lot in the occult, tarot cards, and new-age thinking. This was apparently her attempt at manifesting this desired relationship into reality.

I think a lot of people, if they are honest, are willing to consider God. However, when they learn that "without faith it is impossible to please God," (Hebrews 11:6) they become disinterested because they would rather manifest their own god than serve the One True God. After all, that means they have to trust God instead of themselves and it challenges their concept of God. Why should we seek to please God, they ponder, if He does exist, doesn't He exist to please us?

Is it any surprise that so many conveniently ignore the God of the Bible for a god that fits their liking? Worse yet, others embrace the God of the bible but pray to Him like He's some kind of a galactic Santa Claus who gives whatever is asked of Him as long as they believe their self-assessment that they are a good person. Or they see Him as a cosmic genie that must grant their every wish in order to validate His authenticity and love for them.

People can be so close to the truth often but yet so far away. Let me illustrate. What is faith? The bible says "...faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see." (Hebrews 11:1) To manifest is defined as "readily perceived by the senses and especially by the sense of sight." (Webster Dictionary) However, the Bible says "For we live by faith, not by sight." (2 Cor. 5:7)

If people can be so confident that whatever they want will happen through the power of belief, why can't they put that same confidence or belief in Jesus Christ? The problem with manifesting is that the person manifesting is engaging in at best wishful thinking with no 100% assurance that manifesting equates to absolute results to please one's self. However, the benefits of faith are too numerous to count because the one who exhibits faith in God as God demands is 100% guaranteed to receive all the promises of God in a manner that pleases the Almighty.

What is it that people seek to manifest? Is it peace? God stands ready to give an unshakeable peace to all those who come to Him by faith. Is it love? God longs to show His unconditional love to all those who seek Him. Is it protection? God can protect both the body and the soul. Is it justice? God delivers perfect justice. Is it riches? God gives generously eternal riches that far exceed the temporal riches that one could acquire on earth. Is it joy, victory over anxiety, contentment, self-confidence, freedom from guilt, victory over death, hope, purpose, direction, or forgiveness...? My friend, the good news is you no longer need to put your confidence in wishful thinking, luck, or what the "universe" wants. Jesus Christ can meet every longing of your soul not some of the time, most of the time, but all of the time. Faith in Christ isn't a roll of the dice it's a sure thing.

So stop putting your trust in a feeling or a gut instinct. Your feelings can lie to you and your best thoughts or intentions can deceive you. Recognize you have a God, Jesus Christ, who wants to show you that if you put your whole trust in Him through faith you will experience the supernatural but in a way that instantly opens your spiritual eyes that in Him you will find all you need. There is no power, no force, no scheme of man that can contend with God. There is no understanding that surpasses His understanding. His resources are inexhaustible and His faithfulness to His promises is unfailing.

It's like looking at your life as a massive puzzle that you have been working so hard to complete but you have a very important piece missing to complete it. Every piece you have tried doesn't work. So it remains incomplete. May I suggest the piece you are looking for is Christ? How do you acquire this piece? Through faith. Then when you decide to grab onto it and place it on the puzzle of your life...It fits! That's it! It's what you have always been looking for. He will make you complete and you will never be the same! My friend, stop manifesting and instead put 100% faith and trust in Christ.

"Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and will not be afraid; for the Lord God is my strength and my song, and He has become my salvation. " Isaiah 12:2