Article #1 Faith – a noun and then a verb

Elaine and I celebrated our “graduation” from healthcare and Wall Street work by taking a long vacation.  One of our stops, see the photo nearby, was the largest cathedral in the world.  It is easily five square city blocks.  A shining example of Faith the noun.  There was a small church service going on inside when we visited.  Faith the verb.

Faith the noun is something we own.  It is a part of us.  What order of belief do you organize life around?  What do you believe in?  What makes life work for you?  Answering these kinds of questions give you ownership of your faith.  Do you own your faith?  Is it like the cathedral?

Faith the verb is an outgrowth of faith the noun.  It is an action.  Faith activated becomes part of our character.  It is how we relate to the world around us. The people within the cathedral are exercising their faith as a behavior.

Elaine and I are different than some Christians who hold to only the noun or the verb.  We hold on tightly to our faith in Jesus the son of God.   It is the core of our foundation.  It is the source of security, safety, and stability—it is the noun.  However, the noun of faith is insufficient to nourish our souls.  It needs to be “verbalized” as an action.  Faith in action.  How do you live out your beliefs?  How do you behave in your community?

We are aware of a community who provide ministry services globally. They operate strongly within faith the noun.  They have forty-seven people working on the ground in Ukraine.  They are different kind of Christian’s too.  We were in a meeting on the Friday after the war started where the very forlorn CEO talked of the dangers and risks to his people on the ground.  He had made a few calls arranging transportation for everyone connected with their organization and their families to get out.  The forty-seven people prayerfully, faithfully declined, choosing to stay and continue to serve the people.  What kind of message does it send to our communities if at this critical juncture we simply leave?  No, we are staying to serve our communities.  Faith the verb.

This first stop toward building your soul roadmap was intentional in its design.  While few of us are on the ground in Ukraine behind enemy lines, who is to say that where your life is right now and perhaps moving into the future is a battlefield.  Building your soul roadmap to own your faith and then verbalizing and activating it become resources for your use and development …… everyday!