I’ve often felt that having just a “feeling” about something is harder for people to believe than believing in something we can see. It is easier to trust and rely on something that we can physically see, because it has actual substance. As human beings, sometimes we don’t trust what we can’t see.
I’ve asked myself, if I believe in an eternal life, which I can’t currently see with my own eyes right now, then why do I believe it? I believe it because I’ve had “feelings” deep down inside me that at times seem more real and longer lasting than my physical surroundings. My “not seeing” and just “feeling” makes the idea of living in eternity feel much more real than the proof we seem to require with our physical eyes while on this earth. So why do we give ourselves these physical limitations? Why can’t we see beyond our current sphere of existence? What makes us all wise and all knowing that we think we have all the answers?
During a weekend getaway, we rode through a very small town. As with many small towns, the idea of removing old buildings to make way for new development is just not necessary. I like this about small towns, because you get to see pieces of the past intermixed with progress. In wide open spaces, there is no need to remove a structure to make way for the new – there is plenty of room for it all. I spotted an old building (pictured above) and within it I saw the past, someone’s home where they had lived an interesting life. Because I love history and stories of the past, I imagined a family living in a small but functional home surrounded by land they farmed. This place had once been a brand new home and I’m sure that family never pictured that their home would become a dilapidated shack.
I see faith in this picture. Even though the building is currently not in its’ prime, at one time it was. I can see the remains of what was once something more and I believe that though it looks rundown and useless now, that it once stood proud as the central location of people’s lives. In other words, I have faith in something I can’t see.
What does it mean to have faith? That question has been asked time and time again through the ages, as if it’s some kind of mystery. To me, faith means believing in something that you can’t see with your physical senses, but your spiritual senses tell you that it’s true. Faith feels tangible if you can see things with spiritual eyes, and there is no mystery about it.
The dictionary describes faith as, “Confidence or trust in a person or thing. Belief in God.” That is one good explanation, but seems incomplete. Belief in God is a necessary component of faith, but I think faith can be better described in the scriptures. In Hebrews 11:1 it describes faith this way, “Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” In another version of the Bible, this same scripture passage has even more clarification, “Faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” Assurance takes the mystery out of faith and adds the element of hope that is the fundamental element of faith. Other ideas about Faith are things which we hope for but can’t see, or believing in something that can’t be seen with the eye.
Faith is an essential element to have in our lives. Faith is not a stagnant condition, but an action word. Our works and attitudes show that we are not just waiting for God to bless us, but we are preparing to receive His influence and guidance and asking Him to be a part of our lives. We exercise faith by showing a belief in Him and desiring to make a connection to God. We make an effort by praying, fasting and reading His words in the scriptures. Just as physical exercise makes our bodies and minds stronger, by exercising our faith we become emotionally and spiritually stronger. We increase our faith by practicing hope and trust in the Lord. Our faith cannot be strengthened without doing those things that will increase it.
Many places in the New Testament there are examples of Christ healing believers, who have come to Him having full faith that He can and will heal them. Whether it’s the blind man who gains his sight, the leper who is healed of his disease or the woman that touches the hem of His garment, Christ tells them all, “Go thy way, thy faith have made thee whole.” But in Mark 5:34, He takes it a step farther by saying, “Daughter, thy faith hath made thee whole; go in peace, and be whole of thy plague.” Do we consider that our faith can make us whole? My experience tells me that faith can make us whole from whatever “plague” affects our spirits. Can we see why it is so important to have faith during our trials? By having faith and exercising it, we become witnesses to the power and majesty of God as He teaches us and heals us through our hope and belief in Him.
As I went from day to day enduring my trial, I noticed that I was feeling so much peace in a very un-peaceful time. I have read that after the trial of our faith, then comes the gift. I think the gift of having faith is being blessed with peace. I found that I could get through my days, my burdens being easier to carry because of the peace I felt. That peace became everything to me and without it I couldn’t have endured the trials. One day I spoke with an old friend that was having her own troubles. She asked me how I got through my trials, and I told her it was because I felt peace. I was surprised when she asked me, “is that all?” I responded to her that it just wasn’t “all”, to me having peace to carry me through was everything.
There are many descriptions of faith. Some say that faith is: believing something in your heart when your logic tells you not to. Another description is that faith is the confidence that what we hope for will actually happen. I believe that when we turn our desires totally over to Christ and desire His will above ours that we are exercising the purest form of faith. We can’t have more faith than to totally trust God.
Many people do not have enough faith in themselves. People that have been abused in one form or another have had faith in themselves ”beaten out of them” in a sense, striped temporarily from their souls, maybe not literally but figuratively. Finding faith in oneself after losing it can come back by having faith in Christ. Having faith in the Savior, our brother that was willing to die for you and me and save us from an eternal death, will help us to understand that His love and sacrifice for us, means that we are worth loving. He knows we are worth loving! Coming to know Christ helps us learn to know ourselves, our true, eternal selves that were created by a loving Heavenly Father…not the earthly view that we have of ourselves, but the heavenly view that He sees. We are more than we can comprehend.
The world as a whole is often unaware of the purpose of life. The idea of faith is overlooked as people seek for other things that take its’ place. But having faith and belief in Jesus Christ is the biggest point and purpose of our life’s mission. People in Christ’s day often refused to see His mission and His miracles because they refused to see the purpose of His mission. They talked around it, found fault with Him because of their own traditions, and just could not see the magnificence of Christ because He wasn’t exactly what they were looking for. They expected their “king” to be sitting on a throne, not lying in a manger and walking the dirty streets of Jerusalem. They missed the whole point of His being, because they were quibbling over semantics. Christ was and is the main point of our existence, the center of our faith and our Savior. That is the point.
I believe that I have been blessed with the gift of faith. It has never been difficult for me to understand the gospel. I’ve always viewed it as the greatest gift in my life. I know it’s not that easy for others to have faith, but I know that we can all develop faith. I believe the most important faith we need to have is “Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.” Faith in something or someone or situations is also important, but having faith in Jesus Christ covers so much more of our lives. I have pondered on this idea probably more than any other gospel principal because I think that statement is profound. We hear in lessons or conversations that we should have faith that something will work out, that someone will be blessed in their infirmities, that our prayers will be answered, etc. But true faith IS faith in Jesus Christ – that’s the kind of faith that matters, putting our whole trust in Him, believing that He will help us out of our misery. Having faith IN Christ means that we put our belief directly in Him, that what He’s taught us is true and that we can put our very lives in His most capable and loving hands. We can have faith that He knows our sufferings, He knows the big picture of our lives and we can allow Him to guide us through anything. If we can turn our desires to Him and allow His guidance in our lives every day, then we won’t need to worry about what happens to us. All we will need to do is to turn to Him, pray and ask that we will be aware of the direction He would like us to go and notice the miracles that He will send specifically to us.
There were times that doubt and fear tried to creep into my heart. Fear of what the future held was a huge roadblock for me at times. When we can’t see what the end result of a trial might be, it is easy to get wrapped in the “now” of what we are going through instead of believing in the possibilities of “what might be” in the future. Staying in the “now” of a trial too much may keep us from having the faith that is needed to keep moving forward. When doubt surfaces to the top of our trial heap, we need to give the Lord equal time in believing in Him, and having faith in His purposes and His power to heal us. And as we give way to belief and faith, we give faith the power to grow. Maybe like the old broken down house, we used to be something much more than what we see now. I have faith that we can rise above our current extremities and be so much more. My faith tells me that I must not doubt it!