TURNING FAITH INTO REALITY
Dr. Wilson Lim is the founding pastor of Hope Brisbane. He is currently the national chairman of the Hope of God movement in Australia. He is the International Zone Leader (Oceania) and Director of HGI Group 1 (Education)
He holds Bachelor and Doctorate degrees in Civil Engineering from Monash University and was previously a research scientist with CSIRO. He also holds a Masters of Theology with the University of Manchester.
Dr. Wilson serves on the Boards of Strikeforce Ministry Training Institute, an inter-denominational Bible college, and a community services organisation, Australian Care and Trauma Services (ACTS). He is recognised for his balanced, in-depth teaching and engaging-style of expository preaching.
He enjoys reading, architecture and playing with his children. His wife Pastor Lai Ling holds a Bachelor of Commerce (Accounting) from Monash University and a Diploma in Biblical Studies and Ministry with Rhema Bible College. Both are passionate about the local church and multiplying disciples of Christ. They have three young children, Paul, Daniel and Deborah.
A Healing Church Conference
TURNING FAITH INTO REALITY
One of the greatest challenges in the walk of faith is to turn faith into reality. For faith is the substance of things not seen (Heb 11:1), not tangible, not yet! How can the "not yet" become "yet now"?
Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. Hebrews 11:1
This involves a number of key steps:
Faith comes by hearing God's word
The starting point for faith is hearing from God. 
Rom 10:17 (KJV) So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.
Rom 10:17 (KJV) So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.
For unless we hear from God, we may be presumptuous in what we are believing for. We may claim the general promises of God, but it may not be God's specific intention for the specific situation we are believing for. For example, we may believe for divine healing, which is God's general will. However, at times, God may have greater reasons not to heal a person. But when God speaks, we are assured that God will back up what He has spokeninto our hearts.
When Peter saw Jesus walking on water, he called out to Jesus asking if he could walk on water as well (Matt 14:22-31). When Jesus said, "Come", Peter knew he had heard the permission to do so. So he stepped out of the boat into the water and walked on water!
When God told us to come to Brisbane to pioneer the church here, we knew that we heard from God and came! The result of hearing correctly what the Spirit of God was prompting in out hearts is the church we are in today!
Similarly, I sensed in 2001 that God wanted us to start to look for land and commence raising funds for the community centre, I heard correctly and saw the blessings of God since that time. The key is to hear from God and to hear correctly.
When God told us to come to Brisbane to pioneer the church here, we knew that we heard from God and came! The result of hearing correctly what the Spirit of God was prompting in out hearts is the church we are in today!
Similarly, I sensed in 2001 that God wanted us to start to look for land and commence raising funds for the community centre, I heard correctly and saw the blessings of God since that time. The key is to hear from God and to hear correctly.
Believe with conviction in our hearts 
The next step to hearing is to believe with conviction in our hearts. The seed of the word from God must be mingled with faith so that it may begin to be brought into life.
During this time, it is an important time to spend time in prayer seeking God regarding the seed dropped into our hearts.
It is during such times of travailing, that the word begins to take shape, to crystallise. It is like becoming pregnant with the word. It grows and takes solid shape in our spirit during such times.
It is also an important time to deepen our convictions about what we had heard from God, before we act.
During such times, we may consult our spiritual mentors or leaders in the church to check the accuracy of what we heard from God.
When Lai Ling and I first heard from God about going to Brisbane, we submitted it to the church leadership. They confirmed the word and God graciously confirmed it at 2 other occasions from visiting ministries who did not know us nor of our plans.
At every key phase of our Build Unidus, we ask the leadership to pray together to hear God together so that we may be assured that we have heard God correctly. This helps us to have deeper convictions to believe.
Many Christians fail to take this step of deepening their convictions about what God has spoken. Consequently when times of testing comes, their convictions are insufficiently deep to withstand the doubts and fears that arise.
A premature birth brings forth a baby that may be too weak to survive. That is why it is critical to allow the pregnancy to proceed its full term. In the same way, we need to allow the spiritual pregnancy to proceed its full term. Until we know that we have sufficient conviction that God has truly spoken. This period of pregnancy may take a long time or a very short time. It depends on what God is asking us to believe for and our inner convictions about the things of God.
Sometimes, we hear the rhema word from God and it is immediately sufficient for us to have the depth of conviction to believe fully. At other times, it may require a season of fasting and prayer (Mark 9:14-29).
Many Christians fail to take this step of deepening their convictions about what God has spoken. Consequently when times of testing comes, their convictions are insufficiently deep to withstand the doubts and fears that arise.
A premature birth brings forth a baby that may be too weak to survive. That is why it is critical to allow the pregnancy to proceed its full term. In the same way, we need to allow the spiritual pregnancy to proceed its full term. Until we know that we have sufficient conviction that God has truly spoken. This period of pregnancy may take a long time or a very short time. It depends on what God is asking us to believe for and our inner convictions about the things of God.
Sometimes, we hear the rhema word from God and it is immediately sufficient for us to have the depth of conviction to believe fully. At other times, it may require a season of fasting and prayer (Mark 9:14-29).
Proclaiming His promises
The next step in turning faith into reality is to take the major step of proclaiming forth in faith what we have heard in our hearts.
Faith must be vocalised. By faith we speak the intangible into the tangible. By faith we speak the unseen into the seen.
By speaking it forth, it is the moment that the faith in our hearts confronts the present reality we are in and the creative power of God begins to be released. When God created the world in Gen 1, God spoke. As we study the Scriptures, we will note that prophets and Jesus who performed miraculous signs spoke the word of faith and it transformed the physical situation.
When Jesus calmed the storm in the Sea of Galilee he did not just stand up and mentally commanded the storm to be calmed. Jesus proclaimed, "Quiet! Be still!" (Mark 4:39).
He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, "Quiet! Be still!" Then the wind died down and it was completely calm. Mark 4:39
Faith that is hidden in our hearts only will not release the creative power of God to change the situation. That is why when we pray for people to be healed, we do not pray silently, but we proclaim it!
That is why we ask everyone to make a faith pledge. It is an opportunity to proclaim with faith what God has spoken in our hearts. It is a pivoting moment of our faith, when we declare publicly that we believe God has spoken! When we declare with conviction that we believe!
What is important is that the proclamation comes out of the hearing and the believing. If we skip the first two steps, it may become an empty proclamation.
What is important is that the proclamation comes out of the hearing and the believing. If we skip the first two steps, it may become an empty proclamation.
Living out God's promises
The creative power of God may be released immediately for some situations and in others it will take time. Physical healing can occur immediately or over time. For those requiring time, we must continue to live in faith, believing and proclaiming the word of faith. We must act in faith and continue to live it out.
Abraham was required to live by faith in the promises of God that God will provide an offspring despite his old age. It took some 25 years of continuing to believe before God brought the promise to pass. Abraham was 75 years old when God gave Him the promise. He was 100 years old when Isaac was born.
I have discovered that sometimes God works at the 13th hour. When we already think it is too late! Yet nothing is impossible for God! It is crucial not to waver in our faith at such times that. Peter was walking on water but he failed to continue living in faith. When he realised the enormity of the storm and the waves, his faith faltered mid-way. And he began to sink (Matt 14:29-31).
"Come," he said. Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus. But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, "Lord, save me! Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. "You of little faith," he said, "why did you doubt?" Matthew 14:29-31
For some 14 years we continue to believe and live out in faith the word God spoke in our hearts that we will see multitudes in this church. We have not wavered nor faltered, despite the storms and challenges of ministry. In the same way, let us not falter to believe for the dream God has placed in our hearts for Unidus.
As part of this, we ought to sow by acting upon the word from God. We sow with faith as the initial steps of the journey of faith into reality.
Abraham sowed in faith by leaving his home land to travel to a place God had yet to reveal. Nehemiah sowed in faith by making a request of the King for release to go to Jerusalem.
In Arise and Build Unidus, we can sow by making an initial contribution toward the pledge we make before God. It is like a first step in the journey that puts us into the path of faith.
Abraham sowed in faith by leaving his home land to travel to a place God had yet to reveal. Nehemiah sowed in faith by making a request of the King for release to go to Jerusalem.
In Arise and Build Unidus, we can sow by making an initial contribution toward the pledge we make before God. It is like a first step in the journey that puts us into the path of faith.
Persevering through difficulties
At times our faith may be challenged and tested by the difficulty of circumstances. In such times, we should persevere in faith. Our faith must grow to overcome the circumstances. Abraham's faith had to grow as the years passed and it became increasingly obvious that he and Sarah were physically beyond years of child-bearing.
The perseverance in faith will mature us (Rom 5:3). Perseverance will help us not to give up until faith turns into reality.
Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; Romans 5:3
May you rise up to the exciting challenge of faith and see the intangible become tangible. The unseen become seen. The divine-inspired dream becomes reality. *
