And He said to them, Be careful what you are hearing. The measure [of thought and study] you give [to the truth you hear] will be the measure
[of virtue and knowledge] that comes back to you—and more [besides] will be given to you who hear.
Mark 4:24 (AMPC)
Over the past few days we’ve been talking about the process involved in believing. The fact is, developing faith is a process, and it’s one that requires some effort and diligence.
It’s not that the process is difficult. All that’s required of you is a measure of thought and study, and then the process takes care of itself. Mark 4:26–29 compares it to a farmer who plants seed in the ground. Sure, he has to work hard to get the seed planted, but once that is done,
he goes to bed. While he’s sleeping, the ground produces. He doesn’t even need to know how, and it produces whether he’s conscious of it or not.
The same is true for you. You need to be disciplined to study God’s Word, but you don’t need to worry about getting it to work. It takes care of that part on its own!
Then, as it says in Proverbs 4:23, out of your heart flows the forces of life. What you’ve planted in your heart begins to connect the dots of your future.
This process of believing is about meditating on God’s promises to get them on the inside of you. When you do this, you don’t have to worry about getting rid of negative thinking, anger, jealousy or low self-worth. God’s Word is so powerful that when you begin to get it into your mind, it starts the process of believing and it replaces all else.