The SUBSTANCE of FAITH

Today is "WIDE-OPEN WEDNESDAY"! It's "wide-open" for YOU to take that leap of FAITH!

Faith vs. Reason. Is that the way it has to be when we talk about FAITH?  I'd say "yes" and "no".

There IS a solid place in our lives for "reason". There are decisions that we make in our lives that MUST involve reason or "reasoning", and well thought out reasoning at that!

So, right off, please don't misinterpret what it is that I'm going to say in today's article. By NO MEANS am I saying that you need to throw "reason/reasoning" out the door. Too many people already misunderstand the idea of "stepping out in faith" and have made some very foolish (and harmful) moves in their lives.

FAITH IS NOT CARELESS LIVING! Make sure you get that point. As a matter of fact, if you'll go back to yesterday's podcast and blog article you'll remember that, according to the Biblical definition found in Hebrews 11:1, "...faith is the SUBSTANCE of things hoped for, the EVIDENCE of things not seen."

SUBSTANCE and EVIDENCE. Understanding this will help prevent careless living and careless decisions.

It almost makes my head spin when I think of how many people I hear say something along the lines of, "Well, you gotta' have faith!" or "Sometimes you just have to step out in faith" or even, "Sometimes you just have to JUMP!"

Again, please don't misunderstand. YES, there comes a time when ALL of these phrases are necessary and TRUE! But, first, make sure you have the SUBSTANCE and the EVIDENCE that is used in the very definition of faith before you make that jump.

THE SUBSTANCE OF THINGS HOPED FOR:

How much "weight" does this "passion" of yours carry? Another way to ask that is simply, "How IMPORTANT is this passion of yours?" How DETERMINED are you to achieve this goal or dream? Do you have what it takes to stick it out until you reach your goal? Do you have what it takes to carry it out and fulfill it once you achieve it?

Let me use an example from an old television show called, "The Beverly Hillbillies". Do you remember Jethro? (How can you FORGET Jethro if you ever saw the show?). Let's just say that ol' Jethro wasn't the sharpest tool in the shed, o.k.? Do you remember what it was that Jethro wanted to have as a profession? Here we go - a BRAIN SURGEON. Of course, the comedic aspect of this was that there was no way in the world that Jethro would ever be able to become a brain surgeon! So, in my way of thinking, there was NO SUBSTANCE to his plan. Make sense?

Yes, it is important to STRETCH and CHALLENGE ourselves in our attempts to better our lives. Think just a moment about those last few words in the previous sentence... "better our lives". If we plan to BETTER our lives then it DEMANDS that we do something DIFFERENT so that we don't keep it the same, right? Doing something DIFFERENT demands a different mindset and approach which means we must "stretch" and challenge ourselves in order to do so.

But, at the same time (and this is part of the "reasoning") our goals and dreams must have "substance" in that it is something that we can actually achieve. Make sense? Hey, I love the NBA but at 52 years of age and also due to my lack of ability there is NO WAY IN THE WORLD that I can become a member of a professional basketball team in the NBA...no matter HOW MUCH I want it or regardless of how many pictures I put up on my "dream board".

Now, once you figure something out that has "substance" for your life (a real passion and something that you feel that you were BORN TO DO) then, YES, stretch yourself and be surprised at how far PAST your expections you landed.

I hope this makes sense...give me some feedback, o.k.?

Tomorrow we will discuss the second part of this "faith equation"... EVIDENCE OF THINGS NOT SEEN. But, until then, whatever you and wherever you go, be sure to...

"Make it an AWESOME day! (Who else is going to do it for you?)"

Mike