Article #25 Faith
Faith: the amplifier of life.
Is the experience of living seven or perhaps eight decades in this world all there is? For those who embrace this faith rest area on the Soul Roadmap of life the answer is a simple yet profound – NO! There is however a longer, more complex answer. Ahhh there is so much more than just this life in the here and now. The life in the hereafter will be so much more _________(fill in this blank.) Just to get you started here are a few descriptors of heaven: alive-vibrant-emotional-full of joy-beautiful- full of love.
Now I want you to lean in really close.
The fact there is so much more in the hereafter also means that this world has so much more to offer as well.
Below is a photo from my journal. I have a habit of writing regularly as a part of my life cadence. This section is from 1 John chapter 5. John writes about a faith which conquers the world because we are fathered by God. Being fathered by God brings with it this significant reality, the power to conquer this world. I am currently reading the NT Wright translation of the bible along with his exceptional commentary of the text. The green letters are from the NT Wright translation, the blue words are my writing commentary. On this particular entry I was journaling on a hard day. I did not feel very much like doing anything let alone reading and writing. I realized over the time of writing that I came into the room with a lack of FAITH and the relationship between me and the Father was in need of repair. I did not feel like a son on the morning of this journal excerpt.
Everything and everyone are created by God. Our FAITH accelerates and amplifies our experience in the here and now. My teacher NT Wright describes conquering this world as an act of sacrificial surrender rather than any act of aggression. Our FAITH in Jesus Christ as the victorious Messiah enables us to live at peace as we live out our lives as sacrificially surrendered ones. When we live like this, we are part of a community of people who are conquering the big wide world. We also conquer the world we face close to us. The difficult diagnosis, trouble at work, a family member who stops communicating, a financial reversal we had no control over – all can be overcome by the power of sacrificial surrendering to His sovereignty. There is a God and, while I am not Him, I am however fathered by Him – as a son…..and Elaine therefore as a daughter. This truth allows us to recede into His care during times of challenge to receive much needed resources to help us live in the here and now. Sacrificially surrendered lives may sound like a strange way to navigate this life. It sounds like giving up, settling, being passive. It is not. It is actually just the opposite of what we initially think. Living a surrendered life means we can be surrendered into His design of our lives. His design is always better than anything we could do on our own. I am sacrificing my will for His. My dreams for His. My performance driven goals for His desires. When I do this, I tap into an unseen yet powerful resource. God himself takes up the cause and causes I am now navigating through to be a rudder as a guide, and engine when needed, and protection when I need it most. All ultimately is for my good and all in His perfect timing.
It is how we live empowered lives in this real world we inhabit.
These two photos are from a paradise location in the mountains of Colorado. It was a crystal clear morning, the sunshine coming over my shoulder just as the sun cleared the ridge behind me, catching the water still encased in ice crystals. These photos will remain in my archive long after the sun rises to reduce this scene to just another trout stream. When I gaze at this photo again, I feel a closeness to Heaven here – a horizontal Heaven. What does this photo do for you?
Does FAITH have a place in your life which brings out the conqueror in you?