Get Your Faith Moving

This post is based on a message from Pastor Todd Cosenza, given at Hope Church on Sunday, October 19, 2025. Click the link at the bottom of the page to watch the entire message.

When Faith Gets Stuck

Faith is a gift from God — it’s not something we create on our own. But faith was never meant to stay still. God gives us faith so that we can move things with it — circumstances, mindsets, even mountains. And while God never gets stuck, we often do. When we’ve been believing for something for a long time and nothing seems to be changing, that might be a sign: it’s time to get our faith moving again.

3 Ways to Get Your Faith Moving

1. Be Willing to Unlearn Some Things

In John 9:1-2 (NIV), we see a moment where the disciples of Jesus were spiritually stuck:

“As he went along, he saw a man blind from birth. His disciples asked him, ‘Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?’”

The disciples had been taught that if there is something wrong in your life, God may be punishing you. Instead of anticipating a miracle, they were looking to assign blame to the blind man. They were locked in an old mindset — one that assumed suffering was always punishment. But Jesus came to reveal something radically different. He didn’t just teach miracles; He taught new ways of thinking.

If your faith feels stagnant, you may need to shift your mindset. Jesus wants to renew how we see God, how we see our problems, and how we see ourselves.

If we want to walk like Jesus, we need to think like Jesus. And sometimes, that means unlearning religious ideas that don’t reflect His heart.

2. Assign a Divine Purpose to Your Problem

The disciples thought suffering meant sin. But Jesus said:

“Neither this man nor his parents sinned,” said Jesus, “but this happened so that the works of God might be displayed in him.” — John 9:3 NIV

We often think, “If you sin, you’re going to pay for it.” But Jesus says something entirely different: “If you sin, I already paid for it.” That’s the gospel. That’s mercy. That’s Jesus.

While the disciples wanted to assign blame, Jesus assigned a divine purpose to the blind man’s problem – the glory of God would be displayed in his life through a miraculous touch.

It’s easy to fixate on what’s wrong — to replay the situation, try to fix it ourselves, or wonder what caused it. But faith calls us to something higher: to look for purpose instead of blame.

Jesus assigned a divine purpose to dying Lazarus as well:

“This sickness will not end in death. No, it is for God’s glory so that God’s Son may be glorified through it.” — John 11:4 NIV

When Lazarus was sick, Jesus didn’t panic. He didn’t point fingers. He declared purpose.

You can do the same: “God, I’m assigning a divine purpose to my problem – you will be glorified through this.” Or, “God, I’m going to give 3 people my testimony about how you helped me when this is over.”
Let that be your battle cry.

The enemy always wants to assign a destructive purpose: to steal, kill, and destroy. But you have the power to cancel his assignment by declaring God’s purpose over your situation. When you do that, your faith gets traction again.

3. Go Back and Do What God Told You to Do

Faith isn’t just belief — it’s obedience. Often, when we feel stuck, it’s because we’re waiting on God to move, but God is waiting on us to act on what He already said.

“Go,” he told him, “wash in the Pool of Siloam”… So the man went and washed, and came home seeing.” — John 9:7 NIV

Something we believe turns into faith when we add an action to it. Jesus knew the blind man needed to extend his faith through obedience to be healed. Imagine if the blind man had refused to obey the instruction because it seemed strange. He never would have received his miracle.

Sometimes the key to your breakthrough is in a simple step of obedience — something God told you to do a while ago. It may not seem connected to your problem, but obedience unlocks answers. Faith moves when we move. Sometimes our blessing or answer is waiting for us on the other side of our obedience.

Final Thoughts: Faith Is Action

We often want God to snap His fingers and remove all our problems like a divine magician. But more often, God invites us to partner with Him — to attach our faith to that burden and move it.

So if you feel like your faith is stuck, ask yourself:

• Is there a mindset I need to unlearn?
• Can I assign divine purpose to this situation?
• What’s the last thing God told me to do… and have I done it?

We already have the Lord’s “yes.” Now it’s time to move with it.

Don’t sit back passively, waiting. Step forward boldly, obediently, and faithfully — and watch what God will do when your faith gets moving.