Ephesians 2:8-9
8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 9 not by works, so that no one can boast.
Hebrew 11-1
11 Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen
How do we practice faith on a daily basis? How do we function by just being alive?
What happens in and around us that we can’t control or have anything to do with us?
Our body functions without our control. Our mind works. Our heart beats and lungs take in breaths of air. No faith found here.
Creation exists without our control. The sun rises and sets. The stars appear and fade away. The wind blows where it pleases. Grass grows, trees blossom. animals, insects, birds of the air and fish of the sea exist without our help. No faith found here.
People are born and die, love and hate, serve and steal, encourage and oppress, without my saying so. No faith found here.
So where does faith show up, for faith is an action of intentional hope and certainty? If I eliminate the things, I have no control over, then what is left that I can apply faith to? Is faith about controlling our emotion or our belief system? Does faith, by trial and error, get replaced by fact?
Example:
I’m told that if I exercise, I will feel better and have more energy. The statement, upon first hearing, is just a thought. To take my first step requires faith. However, every day that goes by and I exercise and experience positive results eventually, it can be medically logged and become an exact science. So now it is a fact?
The next person who is told that if they exercise, they will receive positive results are handed a factual study supporting their findings. Yet for that person to actually act on that information still requires faith. Is it faith or ignorance to take the first step? Remember, the results have been factually proven. So, what am I trusting? Could I be just being stubborn? Is it a matter of belief? It’s a matter of the will?
So again, where is faith found?
Faith in God is our best example, yet even here we have enough documentation of God being real that factually supports a living God. The root of faith, I believe, shows up at the point where we reach the end of ourselves and determine that regardless of all the facts, we can’t believe something is really true.
If I go to the edge of a cliff and jump, am I exercising faith? After all, it says being sure of what I hope for and certain what I can’t see. When I jump, I want to be certain I won’t die and sure that I will be rescued somehow.
Can faith be tested? I guess if I jump and die, my theory on faith didn’t work! So, does faith have to be based upon truth? If enough people jumped before me and were rescued, does this become fact and my faith will be shored up if I try jumping myself again? What then was my faith based on? How many had to jump before me to convince me it was safe? What did the first person to jump base their faith on?
Possibly faith is a journey from the unknown to the known, from the first step of uncertainty to the next step of confidence.
Just a Thought…
