OVERCOMING POVERTY: A STRATEGIC GUIDE FOR POVERTY REDUCTION

ABSTRACT
The problem is clear; to overcome poverty. And to do that we must begin by answering the question of why poor people are poor, why and how do some people get out, while some remain trapped in chronic poverty, what accounts for persistence of poverty in a rich world, what are the belief about the poor and the underlying causes of poverty, determine the action that development practitioners pursue, the policies that national politicians devise, and the action that we as concern citizens take. Most economists point to economic growth as the primary solution to poverty, on the assumption that increased prosperity will "trickle down" to everyone. Yet, even in advanced industrial countries, growth in recent decades has benefited only a tiny fraction of wealthy people, but those at the bottom of the economic pyramid has benefited only a little. So, what does account for the persistence of poverty in a rich world? Henry George an economist and social reformer ask. “why does poverty become a deeper problem as society become more prosperous?” that is the fundamental paradox he raised in “Progress and Poverty» An American Anthropologist Oscar Lewis (1959) in his “culture of poverty” argued that, children of the poor are socialize into believing that they deserved to be poor, leading to low aspiration, low effort and inability to escape poverty. But this is a cause, rather as an adaptive response to and consequences of persistence poverty as Lewis propose. Others go back to the legacy of slavery and colonialism to explain how the economic system created poverty and how it is responsible for the financial crises. This is the points advance by one American film “The End of Poverty» produced by cinema libre studio.
This is a complex research program carried out in the North West region of Cameroon. The study combines both quantitative and qualitative method. The focus is on learning from men and women their perception of the causes of poverty and solution, and to learn from men and women who have come out of poverty about the factors and processes that came together for their accumulation, and the role of the broader community, institution if any in supporting or obstructing their mobility. I offer in conclusion some ideas how the result from this study could inform development crises and serve as a guide for poverty reduction.

At least 10 percent of public expenditure should be for agriculture in Africa

Agriculture is the backbone of every african economy, especially in the sab-saharan africa, and more than 60% of the african population depend on agriculture for their basic need. Given these points, on my honest opinion, at least 10% of public expenditure should be for agriculture.If government and international intervention has backfired in the past, this is because of :
 Exteriority of project, that is, insufficient environmental approach which does not takes into consideration the realities of the local milieu, and application of inadequate development models which is evident of the lack of adequate knowledge about the real conditions of the environment.
 Isolation of project in relation to, the national economy, the environment and limited time.
 Inflexibility and regidity of project arising from initiators of the projects not taking into consideration changes in the agraria systems,

INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY AS A CATALYST FOR POVERTY REDUCTION

The reason is clear, information and communication technology (ICT)is a critical part of the ever more intergrated global economy, where knowledge-based activities have become increasingly important and pervasive. ICT enable people, government, and business around the world to acquire and share ideas, expertise and services, helping to create and sustain opportunities for economic development on an unpresidented scale.In this respect, four main aspect should be address:
*access to ICT services
*affordability of ICT services
*adoptation of ICT application in government, educational systems, local organisations, and business
*and finally, challenging issues faced by developing countries on the agenda of ICT for development should be adressed

INCREASE AID IMPORTANT BUT NOT SOLUTION TO OVERCOMING POVERTY IN AFRICA

It is logical that under the current global economic environment, it is important to support the most vulnerable countries of the world. However history has proven that african developmental problems can not and will never be settle by flooding africa with more aid: Africans need to exchange thier natural resourses with technology ensure effective management of aid, fight corruption, and be fully intergrated, and active actors in the global economic systems. African countries also need to create an atmospher suitable for internal and foreign invertment to keep thier economy growing. Employment and earning helps to translate economic growth into poverty reduction. however, to reduce poverty through employment, policies should focus on creating more high-earning jobs rather than merely creating more jobs that can not permit saving and investment

ENDING POVERTY "IS IT A REALITY?"

The decolonization and political liberation of the 3rd world was seen as a catalyst of change, and mark by great hope that we were at the start of an irreversible progress of development. But ours has become the age of disenchantment. We are in a period of cumulative crises; a crisis in the development models and ideologies underlying countries policies and structures; a crisis of know-how as the field of development breaks up and theory proves to be out of step with poorly analyzed reality.The standard diagnosis of Africa is that the continent is suffering from governance crises, marked by corruption, poor economic policy choices, and denial of human right. “Africa is also sick of itself,” one need only mention of the organized blundering by the ruling class who as in Cameroon for example make corruption a system of government. But it is wrong, many parts of Africa are well governed, and yet even the relatively well governed countries remain in poverty. Governance is an issue but African development challenges are deeper. Indeed, using World Bank indicator, there is no evidence that Africa’s governance on average is worse than elsewhere once we control for Africa’s low income. Controlling for income is necessary in evaluating governance, since good governance requires for wages, training, information system and so forth, and thus improves systematically with income level.However, from the year 2000, we have witness an increase in development practices in this part of the world. This can be seen from the World Bank African success stories, though how efficient is the criteria used in identifying these success story is still a topic to debate onFive structural reasons also makes Africa the most vulnerable region of the world to a persistent poverty trap; see http://sanguvsimonpeterfomonyuy.blogspot.com/
Some difficulties related to failures of development projects
1. Exteriority of project, that is, insufficient environmental approach which does not takes into consideration the realities of the milieu, and application of inadequate development models which is evident of the lack of adequate knowledge about the real conditions of the environment.
2. Isolation of project in relation to, the national economy, the environment and limited time
3. Inflexibility and rigidity of project arising from non submission of models of project to the funding agencies, and also, initiators of the projects not taking into consideration changes in the agrarian systems, and insufficiency of staffs of the project.
4. At times most poverty reduction strategies of countries are not up to the task of meeting development challengesHow close can a country come to achieving the goals given current constrains?
I recommended a four step approach
1; countries need to map the key dimension and underlying dynamics of extreme poverty by region, locality and gender, as best as possible with available data.
2, consistent with the poverty map, countries should undertake a need assessment to identify the specific public investments necessary to achieve the goals.
3, the need assessment should be converted into a 10years framework for action, including public investments, public management and financing.Poverty reduction strategies should be elaborated within the 10years framework, with a key focus on transparency, accountability, human right, and benchmarking and result base management.Conclusively, in addition to making funding available for development project, a lot is still to be done in relation to ;-economic growth-Institutions and governance-Competitiveness and export dynamism-Manufacturing (Improvements in product quality, marketing and management)-Tourism- Agriculture and rural development- providing access and financial products for underserved populations- Infrastructure- improving efficiency and leveraging the private sector-Information communication technology-Transport-Power-Access to safe water-Improving health and education outcomes

OVERCOMING POVERTY IN AFRICA

The goal is clear; to end poverty and to do that we most begin by answering the question of why poor people are poor, belief about the poor and the underlying causes of poverty, determine the action that development practitioners persue, the policies that national politicians devise, and the action that we as concern citizins take. belief about the nature of poverty can motivate action or rationalise inaction.This piece of work perhaps throws more light in an attempt to provide answer to these questions. The term poverty implies to those individuals whose incomes are considered inadequate to meet basic needs. The oxford popular dictionary defines poverty as a state of being poor; that is characterise by scarcity, lack and inferiority, where people has little money or means. In real terms poverty is characterised by high mortality rate of infants, malnutrition in thousand of children, age people eating dog food in order to survive, it also means illiteracy and ignorance, disease, misery and stunting of human life and potentials, hunger and starvation. There is always a question; how do we determine if some one is poor?According to IAN Robertson (1983), there are two ways of defining poverty. In terms of absolute deprivation, that is, lack of basic necessities or in term of relative deprivation, that is, the inability to maintain the living standard customary in the society.

Absolute Deprivation:

this is a situation in which people can not afford the basic needs, that is, standards of health care, nourishment, housing, and clothing (kola 1962). This definition is commonly used. In the United State of America, the labour department state that, the average family of four would need 11546 Dollars to maintain a lower living standard; and 1981, medium family income for the Nation was 22388 Dollars. This level of income is determined by calculating the cost of adequate nutrition under emergency or temporary conditions. There is naturally some debate about exactly what this level is: Rural families for instance are expected to live on lower income because their cost of living is comparatively low, that is, housing is less expensive and they can grow some of their own food. Where as in urban area or cities people are expected to live on higher income because housing is more expensive and they depend on the rural area for their food. This makes the cost of living in urban towns and cities very high.

Relative Deprivation:

this situation refers to when people may be able to afford basic necessities but are unable to maintain the standards of living considered normal for society. In some ways this definition is more realistic. One for instance, electricity way not be absolute necessity in the home because most people in the world get by without it. But it is thought to be a necessity and not a luxury in our society. Under this definition the poor are arbitrarily defined as some proportion of the lowest income earners in the society, often the bottom fifth or tenth. This poverty is then measured not in terms of how their incomes compares with the poverty line, but rather in terms of how their income compares with those of the rest of society. This approach assumes that poverty can not be eliminated as long as significant economic inequalities persistCAUSES OF POVERTY IN AFRICAThe standard diagnosis of Africa is that the continent is suffering from governance crises, marked by corruption, poor economic policy choices, and denial of human right. With highly visible example of poor governance, as in Zimbabwe, widespread war and violence as in Angola, Democratic Republic of Congo, Liberia, Sierra Leone, and Sudan. Jean Marc Ela (1980) noted that, “Africa is also sick of itself,» one need only mention of the organised blundering by the ruling class who as in Cameroon for example make corruption a system of government. But it is wrong, many parts of Africa are well governed, and yet even the relatively well governed countries remain in poverty. Governance is an issue but African development challenges are deeper. Indeed, using World Bank indicator, there is no evidence that Africa’s governance on average is worse than elsewhere once we control for Africa’s low income. Controlling for income is necessary in evaluating governance, since good governance requires for wages, training, information system and so forth, and thus improves systematically with income level.Some anthropologists are going back to the old litanies of ‘cultural obstacle to development.’ More crudely, some go back to the climate theory to explain Africa’s ‘backwardness’ or ‘helplessness.’ Other, with the spectre of Malthusian haunting international financial institution go so far to blame the poor themselves for having too many children. By taking account of the interaction between population, development, and the environment, the neo-liberal debate on the African economic crises also resort to the ‘regressive spiral’ theory of poverty which links population growth to environmental degradation.

To understand why Sub-Saharan African is the region with the greatest investment need, four structural reasons are stress that makes it the most vulnerable region of the world to a persistent poverty trap;

1 Very high transport cost and small markets.v Low productive agriculture.

2 Very high disease burden.

3 History of adverse geopolitics, and

4 Very low diffusion of technology from abroad.

Some causes related to failures of development projects

v Exteriority of project, that is, insufficient environmental approach which does not takes into consideration the realities of the milieu, and application of inadequate development models which is evident of the lack of adequate knowledge about the real conditions of the environment.

v Isolation of project in relation to, the national economy, the environment and limited time.

v Inflexibility and rigidity of project arising from non submission of models of project to the funding agencies, and also, initiators of the projects not taking into consideration changes in the agrarian systems, and insufficiency of staffs of the project.

v At times most poverty reduction strategies of countries are not up to the task of meeting the task. In order to measure if they are up to the task, various questions are being raised to measure it. Are the targets aligning with the task? Is the poverty reduction strategy aligning with the goals? Are the targets substantiated with solid analysis of the needed input? Is the strategy grounded in a long-term assessment of needs? And, is the budget consistent with the level of inputs needed to achieve these goals?

How close can African countries overcome poverty?

A four step approach has been recommended;

v First, countries need to map the key dimension and underlying dynamics of extreme poverty by region, locality and gender, as best as possible with available data.

v Second, consistent with the poverty map, countries should undertake a need assessment to identify the specific public investments necessary to achieve the goals.

v Third, the need assessment should be converted into a 10years framework for action, including public investments, public management and financing.

v Forth, 3 to 5 years base poverty reduction should be elaborated within the 10years framework, with a key focus on transparency, accountability, human right, and benchmarking and result base management.

CHRISTAIN FAITH

Faith is the substance of things hope for, the evidence of things not seen (Heb 11:1) God does not respond to our tears, He responds to our faith. what you can acquire from God is determine by your faith. Without faith you can not please God. Faith is the most powerful force that God has given us. With it we can move mountains, receive remarkable answers to prayer, and experience the impossible. "Nothing is impossible to him that BELIEVES." Jesus gave us an important, unforgettable lesson on the power of faith (Mark ll). On a spring afternoon Jesus and His disciples were traveling by foot across the dry middle-east desert when they came to a lonesome fig tree. As they approached it they found nothing but leaves. Then surprisingly Jesus said to the tree, "May no one ever eat fruit from you again." He said it loudly enough so that His disciples heard Him. The next day as they began their journey back down the old familiar road, Peter saw that the fig tree had withered from the roots."Rabbi!" he exclaimed. "The fig tree you cursed has withered!"And with that miracle Jesus began to expound on the subject of faith. "Have faith in God," Jesus answered. "I tell you the truth, if anyone says to this mountain, `Go, throw yourself into the sea,' and does not doubt in his heart but believes that what he says will happen, it will be done for him."It's important to note that the original Greek text reads, "Have the faith OF God." There is a subtle yet important difference between having faith IN God and having the faith OF God. You'll never move mountains by having faith in God. Many people have faith in God and are still not seeing the power of God in their lives. Circumstances are changed only when we use the faith of God. If you're born again, then God has deposited within your spirit His very own faith. You have God's faith!Several years ago, a critic of the faith message wrote a scathing book in which he unfairly criticized those of us who preach that believers have God's faith. In summary, he wrote that believers could not have God's faith since God doesn't have faith. As I read that I thought, "If God doesn't have faith, then He must have doubt." If you don't have the positive, you must have the negative. Of course God has faith! It's terrible to accuse God of not having faith. The Bible unmistakably teaches that believers have available to them the faith of God. Paul writes in Ephesians 5:11, "Put on the full armor of God..." Whose armor are we to put on? God's armor! This is not called the "Christian armor"; it's called the armor of God for the Christian. The armor is God's fighting clothes! Paul then lists for us the pieces of this armor: truth, righteousness, the gospel of peace, salvation, the Word of God, and FAITH. Faith is part of God's armor--it is a piece of His suit. In Romans 13:14 Paul says it another way: "Rather, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ..." This armor is the character of Christ, who is God. Faith is one of God's characteristics, which the believer is entreated to have.In another place Paul enumerates God's characteristics that the believer should possess. He writes in Galatians 5:22, "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace,...FAITH..." Notice that faith is one of the fruit of the Spirit, and the Spirit is of course God. The Greek word used here for faith is pistis, and it is translated consistently throughout the scriptures as "faith". The faith Paul mentions is none other than the faith of God! The other fruits that the believer should bear is "love, joy, peace..." The love we should have is the "love of God shed abroad in our hearts." The peace we should possess is the "peace of God that passes all understanding." And the joy we should experience is the "joy of the Lord which is our strength." Consequently, the faith we should have is the "faith of God that moves mountains."And how does this faith work? Jesus explained how: "...whosoever ...shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith" (Mark 11:23-KJV). Simply believe that what you say will come to pass and you'll have whatever you said. That's how God created all things. God believed that what he said would happen...and it did! We, too, can operate in this kind of faith that God has generously given us.TWO COMPONENTS OF FAITHA man who heard this teaching said to himself, "I'm going to try this faith stuff. I want to find out if it works." So one cold morning day he got up early and said to a tiny hill that blocked the view from his back yard, "I command this hill to leave. Go throw yourself into the sea!'" Nothing happened. The next morning he jumped out of his bed and rushed to the back yard. To his dismay, the hill was still there. He exclaimed, "I knew it wouldn't leave!"This man forgot an important component of faith: BELIEF. Jesus said that you had to BELIEVE that what you said would happen before it would happen. This man did not believe; he only spoke words.True faith has two components: BELIEVING and SPEAKING.In 2 Corinthians 4:13 we read: "It is written: `I believed; therefore I have spoken.' With that same spirit of faith we also believe and: therefore speak." Believing and speaking go together. Many people are speaking without believing, and therefore are not getting any positive results.Another common mistake people make is that they are praying instead of speaking. There are times to pray about problems and times to speak to the problems.Do you remember when Moses was caught between the Red Sea and Pharaoh's invincible army? The children of Israel began to cry out to God for help. Then God strangely asked Moses, "Why are you crying out to Me?" (Exodus 14:15). Isn't that an unexpected question for God to ask? You would think God would be happy that His people were crying out to Him. But He wasn't!God responded to their plea for help with this command: "Move forward!" Can you imagine hearing those words, while looking at the roaring Red Sea. "Move forward"?? "God must be kidding!" had to be the thoughts of the fearful people.But at God's command, Moses stretched forth his rod to part the waters, and the people marched forward.We can glean an important truth from this story: There are times when God wants us to take authority over situations rather than call on Him to do something about them.I'll never forget the time I heard a preacher teach on this subject of speaking to the mountains. Commenting on Jesus' words, he said, "Jesus taught us to ask God to move the mountains for us." I was flabbergasted! How could he misread Jesus' words?Jesus clearly told us that we must speak to the obstacle, and that if we have faith, the obstacle will obey us (Luke 17:6). Let us not pervert His words!FAITH DOESN'T SEE THE PROBLEMThere's one more important thing that I want you to notice concerning Jesus' speaking to the tree. The next morning as they passed the dead fig tree, Peter had to point out to Jesus that the fig tree had died. Peter said, "Rabbi, LOOK! The fig tree you cursed has withered!"I read that verse one day when the Holy Spirit revealed to me the fact that Jesus was not even looking at the tree to see if its appearance was any different than the previous day. Then the Lord asked me, "Tom, if you had cursed a tree and the next day passed by that tree, would you have looked at it to see if there was a noticeable change?"I had to humbly admit, "Yes, Lord." Most of us would have to answer the same way.But Jesus is different. He never goes by what He sees. He was not even looking to see if the tree's appearance had altered. NO! He spoke to the tree and then went on His way, knowing that it would have to obey His faith-filled words.This must be why Paul emphatically declares, "We live by faith, NOT BY SIGHT" (2 Corinthians 5:7). Faith doesn't look at the problem. Don't focus your eyes--your attention--on your difficulty. Don't be checking up to see if your words are working. Be confident that your words of faith must work...they must produce. All too often we are extremely quick to look and see if the situation has changed. If it hasn't, then we get discouraged and begin to doubt. Consequently we don't receive what we were believing God for.I've seen hands laid on the sick for their healing, and then they immediately feel to detect any discernible difference. If they still feel the pain, then they'll declare, "I guess I'm not healed." You see, they're going by what they feel instead of the Word of God.You might say, "What am I supposed to say if I still feel the pain in my body?"Do what Abraham did when he believed God's promise concerning his wife having a baby. He changed his name from Abram to Abraham--before his wife got pregnant!!! Abraham means "father of many nations". Can you imagine calling yourself the father of many nations yet not having even one child to carry on your name? Abraham was "calling those things that are not as though they were"(Romans 4:17). We also must follow in the footsteps of his faith. He is the father of faith. He's our example!Don't declare that the problem--the difficulty, the obstacle--is still there. Declare the end from the beginning.Let me close with one real-life story that confirms the importance of maintaining the confession of faith.Several years ago I used to visit a nursing home near central El Paso. There was one ornery lady who would growl like a tiger. She was mean! It was clear that she was sick in her mind. Along with others, I would constantly pray for her deliverance. But she would push our hands away from her head as we prayed for her. Obviously she wasn't getting any better. One warm afternoon--I'll never forget it--I sat across from her, separated by a long table, and this time I said to the demon bothering her, loudly enough so that she and the demon could hear but softly so as not to make a scene, "I command you, foul spirit, to come out of her." She glared into my eyes, sulked...and said nothing! Before I walked away, I said, peering into her lifeless eyes, "Satan, this will be the last time that I will address you concerning this woman. I said that you had to leave, and you'll obey me. As far as I'm concerned, you're gone!" Then I left.The following week as I was walking into the nursing home, the first person to catch my eye was this woman. Recognizing me, she lifted her hand high and said in Spanish, "I'm free! I'm totally free!" Wow! We rejoiced in the Lord and had a wonderful time praising God. She stayed free and became one of the most active members of our group.By using the authority God Has given you, you can move the mountains in your life.Commanding faith works!
We can take God at His Word, believe it, and receive His promises as ours. We can have an unshakable faith in God and be fully persuaded that what He has promised, He is also faithful to perform. As a parent, if you tell your children that you’re going to give them a gift, and they come to you later begging for what you’ve already promised them, you might be upset with them. By their actions, they would be saying, “We know you said you’d do it, but we don’t believe you will!” That’s basically what we do to Jesus our Healer when we conclude our prayers for healing with the statement, “If it be Thy will.” God has already given His Word to us about healing: “With Jesus’ stripes, we were healed!” (1 Peter 2:24). Instead of basing our prayers for healing on the way Jesus prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane, “If it by Thy will,” why not base our prayers for healing on the way Jesus prayed for healing? Actually, if you’ll notice how Jesus ministered to sick people in His earthly ministry, you’ll find that most of the time, He didn’t even pray for their healing; He just spoke words to the effect, “Be healed!” and the sick were healed. Jesus did pray, however, when He raised Lazarus from the dead. Jesus said, “. . . Father, I thank thee THAT THOU HAST HEARD ME” (John 11:41). Then Jesus commanded, “. . . Lazarus, COME FORTH.” (v. 43). And if you’ll study the different accounts of healing in the four Gospels, you’ll notice that Jesus never refused anyone who came to Him to receive healing. Not one time will you find Jesus praying to God, “Father, heal this person if it be Thy will.” Jesus never prayed that way because He already knew God’s will on the subject of healing! Of course, opponents of divine healing always cite cases of sick people who were prayed for, but didn’t receive their healing. When people aren’t healed, many automatically conclude, “It must be God’s will that I’m sick.” But if that’s true, then why do they go to the doctor for medicine so they can get well and get out of the will of God! If it’s not God’s will to heal—if it’s God’s will for His people to be sick—then according to that kind of thinking, sick people shouldn’t do things in the natural to be well. And well people should pray to be sick! You might say, “That sounds ridiculous!” Yes, it certainly does! But I said it to help you see the absurdity of some of the teachings we hear today which try to prove that divine healing is not God’s will for us, or that healing is not for us today. Healing is God’s will because God’s Word says it is, and it is impossible for God to lie (Num. 23:19). It is God’s will for us to be well, whole, happy, and blessed because the Bible says that God is our heavenly Father, and as a father, He loves us and wants only the best for us.MATTHEW 7:7–117 Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: 8 For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.9 Or what man is there of you, whom if his son ask bread, will he give him a stone?10 Or if he ask a fish, will he give him a serpent?11 If ye then, being evil [or natural], know how to give good gifts unto your children, HOW MUCH MORE SHALL YOUR FATHER WHICH IS IN HEAVEN GIVE GOOD THINGS TO THEM THAT ASK HIM?Many people believe that God afflicts people with sickness and disease in order to discipline them or to teach them a lesson. But how many of you who are parents would discipline your children by making them sick? If you could, would you get some cancer and inject it into your children and tell them, “Now, I’m going to teach you a few things”? Of course not! Besides, if you were to do that, I guarantee, you would spend quite a few years locked up behind bars! Well, the Bible says if natural parents know how to give good gifts to their children, how much more does God our Heavenly Father know how to give good gifts to His children! Yet our Heavenly Father is accused of giving His children cancer, tuberculosis, and every other kind of malady and sickness you can think of. That kind of reasoning doesn’t even make sense!JAMES 1:1717 Every GOOD GIFT and every PERFECT GIFT is from above, and cometh down FROM THE FATHER of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning. We can readily see from this scripture that it is God who has provided the many ways for us to be helped, healed, and blessed in this natural realm in which we live. God doesn’t object to people obtaining healing though natural means—through medical science, for example. But on the other hand, His Word clearly states that He has also provided the means whereby His people can receive divine healing! God is the author of both means of obtaining healing. God has provided the avenue of medical science through which mankind can receive help and healing for the physical body. We know this because of James 1:17 which says that every good gift and every perfect gift is from God above. And doctors and medical science are certainly a benefit to mankind. So it is God who established the means whereby mankind can be helped through medical science. Looking in the Old Testament, we also need to realize that it was God’s idea, not man’s, to establish a statute of divine healing for His people. It was then that God revealed Himself as The Great Physician—as Jehovah Rapha—“The Lord that healeth.”EXODUS 15:22–2622 So Moses brought Israel from the Red sea, and they went out into the wilderness of Shur; and they went three days into the wilderness, and found no water.23 And when they came to Marah, they could not drink of the waters of Marah, for they were bitter: therefore the name of it was called Marah.24 And the people murmured against Moses, saying, What shall we drink?25 And he cried unto the Lord; and the Lord shewed him a tree, which when he had cast into the waters, the waters were made sweet: there he made from them a statute and an ordinance, and there he proved them,26 And said, If thou wilt diligently hearken to the voice of the Lord thy God . . . I will put [permit] none of these disease upon thee, which I brought upon the Egyptians: for I AM THE LORD THAT HEALETH THEE.The Israelites were making their exodus out of Egypt where they had been in bondage to the cruel slavery of Pharaoh and the Egyptians. They were on their way to the Promised Land, and on their journey, they ventured into the wilderness of Shur and sojourned there for three days without any water. Then when they came to Marah and found water, they couldn’t drink it because it was bitter. Moses cried to the Lord, and the Lord showed him a tree and told him to cast it into the water. When the tree was dipped into the water, the water became sweet so the children of Israel could drink it (Exod. 15:25). The tree Moses cast into the waters is a semblance, or a type and shadow, of the tree that Jesus was to die on—the Cross of Calvary. In many places in the Bible, water is representative of people. Isn’t it interesting that in the same way the tree was dipped into the waters at Marah and used to heal the waters, Jesus Christ, who died on a tree and rose again from the dead, was “dipped into the waters” of humanity, so to speak, to obtain our healing and redemption!EXODUS 15:2626 . . . If thou wilt diligently hearken to the voice of the Lord thy God, and wilt do that which is right in his sight, and wilt give ear to his commandments, and keep all his statutes, I will put [permit] none of these disease upon thee, which I have brought upon the Egyptians: for I AM THE LORD THAT HEALETH THEE.In Exodus 15:26, God established a statute of healing for His people. Nowhere in the Bible does it say that this statute of divine healing has been revoked, changed, or altered. In fact, Malachi 3:6 says, “. . . I am the Lord, I change not. . . .” The Lord has never changed His mind or His will concerning the statute of divine healing. When God makes a covenant, or an agreement with His people, He abides by that covenant until it is revoked, stopped, or superseded by a better one. Therefore, since healing is also found in the New Testament, we know that God’s healing covenant is still in force today. Actually, because of the redemptive work of Christ, the Bible says that we have a better covenant than the Israelites had, established upon better promises (Heb. 8:6)! “Yes, but I know someone who was prayed for and didn’t get healed,” you hear people say. But just because someone fails to receive healing doesn’t mean the Word of God is false or that God’s covenant of healing is not in force today. I don’t know why some people receive their healing and others do not. However, I do know that a person must mix faith with the Word in order to receive healing or any blessing or promise from God.HEBREWS 4:22 For unto us was the gospel preached, as well as unto them: but the word preached did not profit them, NOT BEING MIXED WITH FAITH in them that heard it. In other words, if we need healing, our faith has something to do with receiving healing from God, because God’s Word will always work when we act on it in faith. Just because someone failed to receive healing doesn’t change the fact that healing belongs to us and that it’s God’s will that we walk in divine health. Many times we don’t understand why some good Christian people become sick and, instead of receiving healing, they die and go on to be with the Lord. We may not understand why things happen as they do, but a lack of understanding on our part does not discredit the Word of God. The Word says, “Believe you receive and you shall have” (Mark 11:24). Regardless of what happens with other people and regardless of what is going on in our physical body, we must continue to have faith in our God because He is faithful. He is faithful to keep His promises and to perform His Word in our life. He is faithful to be Jehovah Rapha—“the God who healeth thee.”When you have faith as a Christian, you know that God is always with you. Faith is trusting in the unseen and knowing that there is something there -- even when you can't physically sense it or logically understand it being there. Faith is quite powerful and can take you through emotional and spiritual storms so that you don't feel a drop of rain fall on you.Matthew 17:20 says, "If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, nothing shall be impossible unto you." Many people when they talk about having Christian faith, love to point to this little piece of scripture. It reminds us that even if your faith in God "feels" small -- that it truly is much larger than you understand right now. Simply allowing God into your heart makes this faith larger and more powerful for every aspect of your life.There are some that think faith is something you only turn to when times are troublesome. That faith is what you need when you lose a job or when someone is in the hospital. But faith can help you in both good times and in bad. Christians are constantly tested to stay on the path to be good Christians. In good times, a test can come in the form of greed when you have a lot of financial abundance and riches -- do you share it with others or do you hoard it? Do you tithe at your church or help those in your community? Or do you simply take luxury vacations and have fancy cars? Having faith in God means that you know the best moral action at every time. So whether times are good or times are troublesome, you are led and directed by your Christian faith. You trust that your Christian faith leads you.When you live as though your Christian faith leads you, your entire life can change. For many people, they begin to feel a great sense of peace and calmness. Other people are filled with a sense of joy like never before. Some people still feel the nagging sense that they should be doing "something" else. Accountants all of a sudden want to be history teachers. Nurses want to volunteer for programs that help the sick in third world countries for their vacations. Families with extra room in their homes and hearts become foster families. Life changes and improves in many wonderful ways when you let your faith lead your life. Living by Christian faith doesn't mean that you don't have your challenges and moments of frustration -- because that is just part of living a typical life and we don't believe in "magical" solutions. We also live and grow through many of our frustrating situations in ways that we just wouldn't if life were entirely peaceful. Your difficult coworker or neighbor may be a blessing directly from God as you learn patience, kindness and compassion to strengthen your faith like never before. These are lessons that sometimes we just wouldn't discover otherwise.Galatians. 5:6 says, " Faith worketh by love." This scripture is very true. When you act from love, you are living in your Christian faith. When you move away from love -- you probably are not acting from your Christian faith. Some people think they need a set of fancy rules or ideas to fully understand if they are living by their Christian faith. The strongest "rule" to understand is that when you act out of love for one another - you are living by your Christian faith. When you help a neighbor, a child or a coworker you are acting out of Christian faith. When you live fully in your heart, you know you are living in your Christian faith.