Gal. 5:6 For [if we are] in Christ Jesus, neither circumcision nor uncircumcision counts for anything, but only faith activated and energized and expressed and working through love.
Faith is at the heart of how we live the Christian life. Three times in scripture we are told “The Just shall live by faith,” but Galatians says to get to faith you don’t start with faith. We are constantly being told, from Rom. 10:17, that faith comes from hearing a word from God, and of course that is true, but faith’s true beginning isn’t even there. Ultimately faith is birthed out of a personal conviction that you are cherished by God. If I’m convinced of His goodness, personally and perpetually directed toward me, out of His impassioned love for me, then I will trust Him.
When He speaks a word to my heart, then He is giving me a specific thing to trust Him for, but if I’m not deeply convinced of His love for me, I still won’t trust Him. In the natural, if I’m convinced that someone unconditionally loves me, and always, always wants my best, then I will trust any specific thing that person says to me. If you want to grow in faith, and do great exploits on His behalf, it won’t come from memorizing formula’s of faith; instead it will come out of a real, intimate relationship that’s growing in love, because that’s what makes faith work.