Scripture teaches, though, that we are called to exercise two different levels of faith at various times as Christians. At one level we are to be inactive and wait patiently for the Lord to move. Here faith involves believing that Christ will bring about a solution apart from any effort on our end. It is shown in so many situations in Scripture where people were either told to be still or forced to be still and wait for the Lord to act. Examples include Joseph in prison, the Israelites at the edge of the impassable Jordan River, and Jesus’ disciples just before his ascension when they were instructed, “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised” (Acts 1:4).

Yet Scripture just as frequently affirms the faith involved in taking personal responsibility. We find so many impressive pictures in the Bible of individuals who, without any divine revelation or special prompting, took bold steps to reach a personal goal: Naomi and Ruth moving from Moab to Bethlehem, Nehemiah courageously organizing the Israelites to rebuild Jerusalem, Paul knocking on many doors to find opportunities to preach—in his own words, “making it my ambition to preach the gospel” (Rom 15:20 RSV).

In reality, there can be just as much faith involved in taking personal initiative as there is in waiting passively for the Lord to provide. While Ruth would have been commended for staying in Moab and waiting for God to heal the heartbreak of her husband’s death, she probably showed greater faith in going to Bethlehem. By moving forward she placed herself in a vulnerable position where she had to trust the Lord to protect her, to open doors and to make her venture successful. Interestingly, it was this very move that opened her to the relationship with Boaz, who became her husband.

It is right, then, to speak of a second level of faith that we are to demonstrate as Christians. At this level we are active and assertive. We take initiative to find the answer to a need. And by moving forward we force ourselves to a dependence on the Lord that wouldn’t be possible if we merely sat still.

While this distinction is interesting enough, it still leaves the question, when does God want us to operate at level one faith and when at level two? Let me suggest a rule of thumb: If we are facing a seemingly insurmountable problem—a situation that we believe we are powerless to influence—we should stay at level one faith. Yet if there is a reasonable step we can take to improve things or to move toward a goal, then we should assume that God wants us to operate at level two. Taking this step doesn’t mean we won’t still have plenty of opportunity to experience level one faith, for as we move forward unexpected obstacles always arise which throw us back to waiting on the Lord. But the thrust of our life at this point should toward taking bold initiative.

If you examine most of the examples in Scripture where individuals did the will of God, you will find that they fit this pattern. Paul, for instance, generally assumed that he should take initiative to open doors except for those occasional times when God clearly closed them (Acts 16:6-7, 16:39-40). We can expect, too, that taking initiative will often require us to express our convictions clearly—even to those who disagree with us—and that God will use our assertiveness to persuade people and open important doors for us. We should always listen carefully to the counsel others give us and be open to having our insights changed by theirs.

We find an inspiring example of assertiveness in David’s discussion with Saul about fighting Goliath. David took the initiative to propose to Saul that he battle the giant. Saul’s initial response was negative: “You are not able to go out against this Philistine and fight him; you are only a boy, and he has been a fighting man from his youth” (1 Sam 17:33).