GOOD FRIDAY, 2026

What strengthens your faith ?

What should strengthen your faith ?

Biblically, what should strengthen your faith ?

What should you not look to, to strengthen your faith ?

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I started writing this on Good Friday morning, listening to a program investigating the shroud of turin.
Whether the shroud of turin is authentic as the burial cloth of Jesus—or not—I am content to leave the matter to research of others—I AM CONTENT TO LEAVE THE MATTER TO GOD, TO JESUS HIMSELF.
After all, HE KNOWS.*

Oh, now we can see how things the Bible said, happened, can happen, will happen, when they were dismissed because we couldn’t see how they could happen.
Even recently, in our lifetime:
— technology
— mark of the beast
— simultaneous worldwide visuals
— antichrist

How could David write (in our Bible, 22 centuries ago) about the Messiah “pierced . . .hands and feet”, before crucifixion was invented by the Romans, before they came to power ?

How could Isaiah write about “God, Who sits above the circle of the earth” several millenia before we learned and believed the earth is indeed round.

Jesus did miracles after miracles—healed many and fed thousands—and how many believed and followed — — and how many stopped following Him when He told them the rest of the story (not just about food and healing).

Note the astronauts that left earth’s orbit for the moon two days ago, enthusiastically looking back as soon as they could on the beautiful round earth.

And, how about recent archeology, uncovering countless items that factualize Bible references previously discounted.

Someday, we may find Noah’s ark, and irrefutably ‘prove the flood.’
Amazing how powerful evidence everywhere, wordwide, already matches and confirms the flood of Noah’s day—beautifully !

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There is so very much evidence, so many facts that would make a person believe, and strengthen a person’s faith.
But I bring up something on the flip side, that discounts depending on signs, and artifacts, and especially near-death-experiences to strengthen anyone’s faith, or bring someone to faith in Jesus.

X☆X☆ “If they do not listen to Moses (the Law of God, our sin) and the prophets (the message of the Messiah, Jesus, our Savior), neither will they believe if someone comes back from the dead.”—–Jesus said that.

If something, anything, makes it easier to believe in Jesus to forgive you and save you from your sin, it makes it less likely that you will believe.

Anything that makes life easier is less likely to strengthen your faith.

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So, what strengthens your faith ?

—Both physically, and especially spiritually
—universally, and indisputably
–hardship and testing strengthen your body
—trouble and persecution strengthen your faith

“We must through much tribulation enter the Kingdom of God.”

“Consider it pure joy, my brothers, when you encounter trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance.
Allow perseverance to finish its work, so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.”

How can you tell your faith is being strengthened ?
“We also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance;
perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us.”

What do persecuted Christians today say about their suffering ?
They say persecution blesses them with a new and closer walk with Jesus.
And they only ask that we remember them, and pray for them.

That is what strengthens faith.

We can expect the same—
☆ ☆ ☆ JESUS SAID SO ☆ ☆ ☆

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*They say the Shroud of Turin has evidence of an enormous flash of light embedded in the cloth, to match the LIGHT when Jesus THE LIGHT OF THE WORLD came back to LIFE.

And that would not be the only supernatural evidence in the natural world, of The Almighty.

Just a note about the shroud–
–For most people, even the label, ‘the shroud of turin’, immediately takes it from something Biblical to another ‘Catholic relic’ to be worshipped or disputed.
Consider how many details the Bible describes that seem to have little or no relevance to the story, like what it says about Jesus’ burial cloths–BUT GOD has reasons for including it all, for us to discover and understand someday, just like—
—like power with crude oil, uranium
—like technology with silicon
—like communication with . . .
God just expects us to “acknowledge Him in all our ways, and He will direct our paths.”

We get used to what we see in the world around us and in the heavens above—boatloads and boatloads of evidence that “leaves us without excuse” that there is God, and “He created the heavens and the earth.”

So, His promise to return in power and splendor and majesty to conquer and judge, is just as certain as all the evidence around us, and all the evidence we continue to discover.

No wonder the Bible says,

“The goodness of God is to lead us to repentance” and faith.

“PREPARE TO MEET YOUR GOD !”