Whenever we face suffering or hardship as a Christian, we have two choices. We can either step up or we can shrink back. However, as the writer of Hebrews said, "We are not of those who shrink back."

The foundation of a building is the most important part of the building. If the foundation is strong, the building will endure, but if the foundation is weak, the building will not stand. The same is true for us. If the foundation of our faith is strong, we will stand in times of storm. What is the foundation of your faith?

A desperate nobleman came to Jesus and begged Jesus to go home with him because his son was on death's door. Jesus healed the boy, but He didn't do it the way the nobleman expected Him to do it. The man had to exercise faith without sight.

When God made some incredibly massive promises to Abraham, he responded in faith and believed God. Abraham's faith teaches us some powerful lessons when it comes to living in authentic faith.

The time to prepare for a storm is before it hits. While we can't prepare for every storm life may throw at us, we can prepare for the storms that hit us on the inside.

While it's tempting to look past the greeting in 1 Thessalonians to get into the "meat" of the letter, to do so would cause us to miss some powerful truths - including the effect that faith, love, and hope has on followers of Jesus.