Faith is a human exercise. It is typically associated with Religious or Spiritual matters, but the truth is that Faith is a uniquely human exercise. It plays an outsized role in Religion and Spiritual matters. Both fields are human endeavors that rely on beliefs that are precursors to Faith.
I want to talk to you today about Faith in terms of its indispensable value for living as an entirely free and empowered human being. In this talk, you may find connections to your beliefs, but that is incidental to my intention.
I want to begin with a simple idea. Faith is essential to living.
What does Faith empower us to accomplish? First, Faith responds to the “inherent” promise of every day that we can become better and do more today than we did yesterday. When you wake up and put your feet on the floor to rise from your bed to begin your day, you are acting in Faith.
Virtually everything you and I do from that moment until we return to our beds to rest is an act of Faith. Every sip of a drink, every bite of food, every step on a busy sidewalk, and every inch we drive in our cars are Faith moves.
If you own a car, you will walk to your car door, open it, sit down, apply the brake, and engage the ignition, fully expecting the vehicle to start.
You then place the vehicle in gear and apply the accelerator. Once on the road, you proceed to your intended destination. All of these are acts of Faith.
Why? You began with a promise that is understood and unspoken. The promise inspired hope. You responded to the hope with an action that propelled you toward the hope of reaching your destination without incident. You acted upon the hope because you believed the unspoken promise.
What I just described is the Faith Framework. If you repeat the process enough times without incident, your Faith becomes a form of knowledge. We use the Faith Framework every day of our lives. It is unseen, never acknowledged, but clearly understood and practiced.
Some may attach a religious or spiritual idea to their Faith Framework, while others behave the same way without any allusion to religious or spiritual influences. We are, in fact, Faith Engines. The mere fact that it functions unseen does not invalidate it as real in the same way Gravity and Air are fundamental.
I might assert that we can not continue to live without the fundamental practice of Faith.
Why does this matter? What is all the fuss about this unseen, unacknowledged principle that is part of life?
Faith is Fundamental
If Faith is fundamental to life apart from the religious or spiritual overtones, then we must become better at using Faith to live. There is a well-known saying, “Fortune Favors the Bold!” I might translate that to say, “Life Rewards Exceptional Faith!” If challenged, we all could make a list of actions of Faith we have taken.
· I attended High School
· I attended College or Trade School
· I drove to another state
· I flew in an airplane
· I ate at a restaurant
We are Faith Engines, who use our power in the most unspectacular ways. It is like using a jackhammer to drive a nail in a wall to hang a picture. So answer the following question,
“If I knew I would succeed at the next thing I began, what would I do?”
Your future is on the other side of the question mark. It just takes Faith To See It.
© 2021 Garry M. Spotts, M.Div. All Rights Reserved – Unauthorized Use or Duplication Are Prohibited Without Express Written Consent of the Author