We must live faithfully because faith is what strengthens endurance and those who endure til the end will reap the harvest.  We must live faithfully because faith dictates our conduct (how we live).   In the beginning of Paul's journey, he did not know Jesus.  But on the Damascus road, he was blinded by the light and heard a voice calling him.  Paul asked, Who are you, Lord?.  Thus began Paul's journey of faith.  Since then, he endured one hardship after another, persecution after persecution, but never wavered in his faith.   For us to fight the good fight and to finish the race, we must live faithfully. 

 We live faithfully by having full confidence in God.  This means having confidence in his word, in his promises, and in his purpose for us. When we put our confidence in Jesus, He is willing to touch and heal us, willing to pick us up when we fall down, willing to pull us out from the pit of miry clay, willing to lead us home. 
 
 The second word in the Hebrews definition of faith is the word conviction.  Conviction means certainty.  Certainty of what we hope for will happen, even if we can't see it.
 We live faithfully by pleasing God.  Hebrews 11:6 says that without faith it is impossible to please God, for he who come to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him.  The reward of faith is to see what we believe.  Some people see and hear, yet do not believe.  There is an African folk tale that goes like this.

 A certain tribe noticed that their cows were not giving as much milk as they once did.  So they stayed up all night and watched what the cows were doing differently.  They noticed a beautiful young woman carrying a large pail floating down to earth from the sky.  She milked the cows and went back to the sky.  The following night, the men trapped the young woman and discovered that she was a sky maiden from the sky tribe who had no way to get food for themselves.  The man who trapped the woman promised to release her if she would return and marry him.  She agreed, but only if she could go back home for 3 days to prepare herself.  She returned after 3 days with a large sealed box and was ready to be married with one condition.   He could not open the box.  The two were married and lived happily until one day when his wife was away and the curiosity got the best of him.  He opened the box and looked inside.  The box was empty!
 When the wife found out, she wanted to leave him.  The husband asked, "What's the big fuss over an empty box?"  To that she said, "I am not leaving because you opened the box.  I am leaving because you said it was empty.  It wasn't empty.  It was full of sky.  It contained the light and the air and the smells of my home.  When I went home for the last time, I filled that box with everything that was most precious to me to remind me of where I came from.  How can I be your wife if what is most precious to me is emptiness to you?
 
 Have full confidence in the one who is most precious to God.  Please God by trusting and obeying God's precious sacrifice, Jesus Christ.  This is how we can live faithfully.