Has anyone ever been able to completely and accurately define faith? Faith and love are abstract nouns that we cannot see or touch. They can be difficult to conclusively define. Faith and trust are closely related, and I'm starting to think you can't have one without the other. Hebrews 11:1 tells us that faith is the substance of things hoped for - the evidence of things not seen. Faith is not the thing we are believing for, is it? We may be believing God to provide a house, a vehicle, an income, etc. But those things are not the substance. Faith is the substance. Faith is the evidence.
Hopefully, I just blew all your theology! lol. Having faith in God is the substance of life, I'm thinking. It's not what we own, what we accomplish, or what we even do with our lives. Faith gives life substance. Faith is the evidence - not the "stuff" we get through believing. I'm not sure I can describe it accurately or acceptably. But faith is it.
Faith is that force way down inside our beings. When we are ready to throw in the towel and give up - it's faith that whispers, hold on. When we have cried our last tear, and there are no words left to pray, it's faith that helps us get up and keep going. Why? Because somehow, no matter how difficult it seems, how challenging life becomes, or how hard caregiving becomes - faith is carrying us through. It's faith that sends a hand up through the water's surface when we are sure we are drowning in life's sea.
We've talked about it before, but I was in a group last night that made it sound like if we have faith, nothing bad ever happens to us. Tell that to Jesus, who faced the cross. Explain that to Paul, who was imprisoned, beaten, and shipwrecked. Tell that to Joseph, who was betrayed by his own brothers and cruelly sold into slavery. Tell that to every caregiver who got up this morning, ready to take on another day of caring for a loved one. Whether it's through tears of joy or sadness, physical difficulties of their own, or not being sure of what the next step entails - caregivers get up day after day and keep doing what they do - by faith. Because faith is the substance.
By faith, David faced and killed the giant. He didn't avoid Goliath by faith. When Moses brought the Children of Israel out of Egypt, they ran right into the Red Sea. To make matters worse, Pharoah's army was closing in from behind. Through faith - they believed in God and crossed the sea on dry ground. That would be the same sea that wiped out Pharoah's army. Moses didn't avoid confrontation or difficult situations through faith; he walked right through them.
Today, I will remind myself that circumstances do not dictate to me whether faith is present or not. I'll gladly take on the difficulties knowing that God has me - and that's faith, pure and simple. It doesn't mean I'll avoid hard decisions and won't face any giants. But faith does mean that I'll come through whatever life presents before me today. Faith is trusting that God still has me and carries me when necessary. So, I will trust Him for one more day. Will you join me?
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