BELIEVER

Surfers surf. It’s what they do. Believers believe.

This will probably date me, but years ago, The Monkees sang, “I’m a believer now.” They weren’t talking about faith, but they named something true about it. You only say those words after something changes. Faith is born that way.

Belief usually follows a shift. Doubt gives way to trust. Distance gives way to conviction. Scripture calls us to more than agreement. It calls us to trust, to believe in a way that demands a response. That’s what gives weight to the words, “I am a believer.”

“You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe—and tremble.”
(James 2:19)

Many believe. Some agree with doctrine. Others are willing to acknowledge that God exists. Scripture is blunt about this: demons do all of that, too. At least they tremble. Many believers don’t even do that. They simply believe. Unmoved. Unchanged. Unaligned.

The difference isn’t awareness. It’s response.

Surfers Surf. It’s What They Do.

We refer to Christians as believers. At least, I do. I often say surfers surf and leaders lead, it’s what they do. A surfer isn’t defined by owning a surfboard but by entering the water and riding the waves. The wave supplies the power, and the surfer responds by riding it. In the same way, believers believe. Not by merely agreeing that God exists, but by trusting Him. Faith doesn’t manufacture salvation. It rests in what Christ has already done. But real belief always responds.

Demons acknowledge God’s reality. Here’s the difference: believers entrust their lives to Him and pursue Him.

Belief is Commanded, not Suggested

“Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved.”
(Acts 16:31)

“This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent.”
(John 6:29)

Biblical belief is not passive acknowledgment. It is a summons. Scripture doesn’t treat belief as an opinion we hold, but as a response we are called into. To believe is not merely to agree with truth, but to entrust ourselves to it. It is an act of trust, not just mental agreement. To believe, biblically, is not to nod in agreement, but to step forward in trust.

Defining Faith: Belief That Obeys

Scripture tells us that demons believe, and that alone should make us pause. They know what is true. They recognize who God is. They even respond with fear. Yet nothing in them changes direction. Their belief never crosses the line into surrender.

Biblical faith does not stop at recognition. It responds.

• Faith listens instead of resisting.

• Faith yields instead of controlling.

• Faith obeys instead of negotiating.

When belief never changes direction, it isn’t faith yet; it’s information. And when obedience grows out of faith, it is not an attempt to earn anything. It is simply trust lived out.

When Belief Became Personal

I have always believed. At least, I believed that God was real. Like most South Africans of that time, I grew up attending church and Sunday school mainly because my parents made me. I listened to the preacher, watched people stand and sit on cue, sang from the old hymnal, and recited familiar words. Even then, something bothered me. I remember quietly wondering, Is this the true God, or just tradition?

Later, I was transitioned from civilian life into mandatory military training and deployed into unconventional combat. It’s one thing to train with blanks or even live ammo, but it’s another to walk into a real firefight with bullets, grenades, and RPGs.

When the thought hit me—I could die—eternity ceased to be just a concept. Before a pre-dawn strike on an enemy position, the question weighed heavily: If I die, will I go to heaven?

I thought I’d better get right with God… just in case.

Lying in my foxhole, waiting for the order to move, something became painfully clear. I believed in the existence of God, but I did not believe in God. I acknowledged that He was real, but I did not trust Him. My belief had never crossed the line into surrender. I prayed a quick, desperate prayer: “God, if You keep me alive, I will seek You and serve You.”

I made it out alive. When I returned to civilian life, the questions didn’t fade. They deepened. I began a deliberate search, not for religion or tradition, but for the true God. I was no longer satisfied with inherited belief or borrowed faith. I wanted to know if God could be trusted, not merely acknowledged.

I visited various churches and found dead religion. I wanted the presence of God, so I explored some cults. They were different, but they were trying to control me. I wanted none of that. As Eastern religions gained popularity, I gave them a try. Sitting cross-legged, trying to find God, bored me.

Jesus people were on the streets, smiling, preaching, and handing out tracts that said, “Turn or burn!” I said, “You’ll never catch me doing that!” I walked past them, tossing the paper into a trash can. What can I say, I was a clean hippie?
(Side note: never say never.)

Eventually, my search led me to a small Pentecostal church. I was already nervous. I’d been warned long before the army to never go to those churches because they “catch the Holy Ghost.” That scared me. I wanted nothing to do with catching ghosts.

The people weren’t welcoming. I suspect it was the shoulder-length hair, my worn Levi jeans, and flip-flops. I stood out like a sore thumb at a carpenter’s convention.

The quartet sang, “Dem bones, dem bones, dem dry bones.” I remember thinking and rolling my eyes, If I find God here, how will I tolerate this music? I was into Grand Funk, Deep Purple, Carlos Santana—real music.

Despite the stares. Despite the music. Despite the pulpit-pounding preaching.

I sensed God’s tangible presence.

My search came to a moment of decision. If this is the true and living God, then I will believe and serve Him. I became a believer that day. And I’ve been one for over fifty years. (Soon after this encounter, I was standing with the Jesus People handing out paper tracts, saying, “God loves you!” As I said, never say never.)

To be a believer is not simply to agree that God exists.
It is to entrust your life to Him.

So, What About You?

If you are a believer, how is your walk with God going?

Not how does it look.
Not how does it sound?
But how is it, really?

Belief isn’t static. It either deepens or it drifts. Even long faith can quietly become routine. Trust can be replaced by familiarity. Obedience can soften into convenience. To be a believer is not just to start well. It is to keep trusting. To keep responding. To keep yielding your life to God as He continues to shape, correct, and lead you.

Growth doesn’t always look dramatic. Often it looks like quiet faithfulness.
Returning to prayer.
Opening Scripture again with hunger.
Choosing obedience when it would be easier not to.

And for those who are still searching, or who recognize themselves in my story, hear this: most people believe something about God. Some believe He exists. Some believe the right doctrines. Some believe because they were raised that way. But biblical belief is never content to stay theoretical.

The question isn’t Do you believe in God?
The question is Do you trust Him?

Trust shows itself. It leans. It follows. It obeys, even when the outcome isn’t guaranteed. Not perfectly. Not flawlessly. But honestly.

I’ve learned over the years that belief isn’t a box you tick once and move on. It’s a posture. A daily response. A decision we return to again and again. There are moments when faith feels costly, uncomfortable, or inconvenient. That doesn’t mean belief has failed. It means it’s alive.

If you’re realizing that your belief has been mostly inherited, assumed, or theoretical, you’re not alone. I was there too. And if you’re wrestling, questioning, or quietly doubting, that may not be the enemy of faith. It may be the doorway to real trust.

Here is my invitation:

Don’t settle for merely believing about God. I did that for years. Ask whether you are willing to believe in Him, not just acknowledging His existence, but entrusting Him with your life. Not just agreeing with truth but responding to it.

That is what it means to be a believer.

A Simple Prayer, Yet a Life-Changing One

God, I believe; help my unbelief. I believe that Jesus Christ died for my sins and rose again. I believe in my heart and confess with my mouth that Jesus is Lord. Where my faith has been weak, borrowed, or neglected, meet me with truth and grace. Today, I entrust my life to You, not perfectly, but honestly, and choose to follow You in trust and obedience. Amen.