In practicing this lifestyle of faith, the most vital principle is to act on the Word. God always lets us know that if we act on His Word, we’ll see His glory. His Word always comes first.

In John chapter five, there’s a remarkable account of a man at the pool of Bethesda who had been sick for 38 long years. When Jesus saw him, He asked him, “Do you want to get well?” He knew the man had been in that condition for a long time.

The man went on to recount all the limitations he was faced with. Then, Jesus said to him, “Get up, pick up your mat, and walk” (John 5:8 GNB). Notice that the Lord didn’t touch him or do anything spectacular. He simply spoke and the man acted on His Word and was healed.

Understand that when Peter stepped out of that boat in Matthew 14:29, he was acting on the Word of the Master that said, “Come.”

It was this Word that held him up on the raging sea, in defiance of all natural laws. Ordinarily, it’s impossible for a man to walk on water, but on the Word of Jesus, Peter did! However, the next verses record that when Peter, “...saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me. And immediately Jesus stretched forth his hand, and caught him, and said unto him, O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt? (Matthew 14:30-31). Peter doubted, and this short-circuited the power of the Word and he began to sink. But the fact remains that he walked on the water by acting on the Word of Jesus.

As long as his focus was on Jesus, he didn’t sink. However, the moment he shifted his gaze and attention from the Lord to the fierceness of the wind, he gave room for doubt and fear and began to sink. Hebrews 12:2 is very instructive. It says, “Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith…” The original Greek rendering of this Scripture reads, “Looking away unto Jesus…” This means to turn away from everything else and fix your gaze on Jesus. In other words, don’t get distracted by the things happening around you; instead, concentrate on God’s Word. This, however, doesn’t mean you’re living in denial; you’re simply denying the circumstances the power to dictate the way your life should go. If Peter had let his attention remain on Jesus, he wouldn’t have considered the contrary circumstances and would have continued walking on the water.

Walk every day with your eyes fixed on Him. As you keep your gaze on Jesus, you’re sure to walk through the storms of life victorious. The way to stay your gaze on Jesus is to make His Word your focus, and that’s by meditation. The Bible says in Joshua 1:8, “This book of the law [the Word of God] shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.”

When you meditate on God’s Word, it takes up residence in your spirit and produces what it talks about in you. In life, you may face difficulties and impossible situations, but they don’t have to dictate the way your life should go. Look away from those difficulties unto Jesus by fixing your gaze on His Word. If it’s a problem in your body, take hold of God’s Word that speaks of your divine healing and health. As you keep meditating on it, it won’t be long before your body becomes a reflection of what it talks about.