Years ago, I finally started journaling regularly. The reason I say “finally” is that I had to try journaling four or five different times, only to stop after a few weeks each time.

Someone bought my wife, Amy, and me a journal that we liked to use. It’s a five-year-old diary with only five or six lines to write daily. If it happens to be July 28, we can see just above the day what happened on July 28 of the previous year and the year before that. The highlights of five years of our lives are stacked on top of each other on a single given page.

As I kept a journal, I began to notice that many of my days were similar. Last year, the same day, I did the same thing. Most of the time I do the same things. I go to meetings. Study. Preach sermons. Practice. Have family dinners. Although I have had the joy of being used by God as a pastor, this is largely the result of my “work”, not just my regular faith in following Christ.

During one of my dangerous prayers of submission, God prompted me to add one small thing to my life that made a big difference. Since we cannot please God without faith (see Heb. 11:6), I believe God has asked me to just do one thing a day that requires faith. Every day, no matter what, at least one act of faith.

This simple challenge changed the way I live. Instead of existing passively, I began to live aggressively, looking for opportunities to manifest my faith.

When I met a guy who seemed discouraged on a flight, I talked to him and did my best to cheer him up. Then I felt prompted by God to do more than just talk. I wrote him a note and included two different Bible verses. Rather than just hearing encouragement, I wanted him to have a recorded version that he could review.

Another time, while Amy and I were grocery shopping, we saw a woman with three children meticulously reviewing prices, sorting through coupons, and adding up amounts on her phone’s calculator. Knowing that she was obviously short of money, as an act of faith, we asked one of our children to bring her some money with a note that simply said, “God cares about you. and wants to meet your needs”. We don’t know how God used this in his life, but believing that he did has changed us.

Here is another example. Recently I landed in Florida for an event. The host, a successful local businessman, picked me up from the airport and immediately put me at ease. Her love for Jesus was evident and her heart to serve was strong. Even though he excelled as an entrepreneur, I suddenly had the feeling that he might be called by God to use his gifts in ministry.

So I took a small step of faith and asked him, “Have you ever considered using your talents full-time for God?” He almost broke the car telling me that he had just spoken to his wife about it the night before! Now he is seriously considering selling his business to pursue something different.

At first, doing something daily that requires faith can seem daunting or even overwhelming. But once you start, not only will you enjoy it, but you may even feel that God is changing you from someone with self-centered faith to someone with self-sacrificing, God-glorifying, and centered faith. on others.

Your leaps of faith don’t have to be big, intimidating, or newsworthy. They can be simple, unpretentious and even performed in secret.

It’s just a matter of being willing, of being open, of listening to God, and of risking more. Stop focusing on yourself and noting the needs of others. Listen with your heart, not just your ears. Read between the lines and look for a way to serve.

How about telling God that you are available? And you looked for at least one opportunity a day to do something that required faith?

Instead of living a meh life, small acts of faith teach us to depend on God. They bring us closer to him. They build our confidence.

Make only one dangerous prayer.

Only risk one leap of faith.

Taken from Dangerous Prayers: Because Following Jesus Was Never Supposed To Be Safeby Craig Groeschel. Copyright © 2020 by Craig Groeschel. Used with permission from Zondervan.

Craig Groeschel is the founder and senior pastor of Life.Church, an innovative multi-site church based in Edmond, Oklahoma, and a New York Times bestselling author of books such as Dangerous prayersand Hope in the dark.