The Bible tells us that we have all received a measure of faith (Romans 12:3), and that everyone can move mountains (Mark 11:22-24). But in spite of these truths, we all have our struggles. Ask anyone and they will tell you that they don't feel like they have the faith they need for their daily problems, let alone for moving mountains. And when it comes to experiencing abundance in our lives, no matter how much we may be praying, we struggle to just get by and end up living paycheck to paycheck.

The difficulty for us comes because we have a conflict in our hearts. Throughout our lives we have come to believe certain things. We learned most of them when we were young, and they have formed the basis of what we believe. So when we hear the truth of God's word, a conflict arises between what we have always believed, but which is probably not true, and the Bible. In order to remove the unbelief and live in faith, we must confront the unbelief, and the lies behind it, whenever we see it in our lives.

One of the wrong beliefs that most of us grew up with is: I'll believe it when I see it. The problem with that belief is that it puts things in the wrong order. The truth is that we see it because we believe it, not the other way around.

In the context of faith and abundance, our unbelief says: I'll believe that I have abundance in my life when I see it. The truth is: I'll see abundance in my life when I believe that I already have it.

I know that we look around at our circumstances and say, "But I don't have the abundance I want. Just look at my bank account, or my credit card balances." But seeing our current reality as something that is persistent, or even permanent, is part of the problem. We end up stuck where we are because we believe that things don't, or can't, change.

Faith is being able to acknowledge our current circumstances, but still hold onto the promise of what we hope for, even though it is not yet tangible for us. By definition, hope is something that we don't see (Romans 8:24-25). So when Hebrews 11:1 tells us that faith is the substance of what we hope for, it's saying that faith is the conviction (the belief and attitude) that we already have our hope. It is as real to us today, at least in how we think and feel about it, as if we were already holding it in our hands.

And when it comes to abundance, we should be thankful for what we already have, and also for all that we hope for. Being truly grateful for all that God has given us, and all that He is giving us by faith, changes how we feel about our lives. Our hope shapes our future, as we speak and act today in a way that says: "I am so happy and grateful now that all I hope for is already mine."

Philippians 4:6-7 tells us, "Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."

By letting God know what we want, that we want to experience the abundance He has for us, and then being thankful, truly grateful in advance because we know that He has answered our prayer, we overcome our doubts and experience peace. That peace is a sure sign that we trust God, and that we are confident that He will never fail.

When it comes to living in abundance we have to start from our current circumstances. We can't wait for things to change, for things to get better, before we start to have faith. The ability to look at the mountain rising up out of the ground, but to know beyond any doubt that it will soon splash into the sea, is what faith is all about.

To be able to look at our credit card balances and empty checking account, but to have an unshakable confidence that God has answered our prayers and that abundance is ours now, is also what faith is all about. And as Jesus said in Matthew 9:29, "According to your faith will it be done to you."