Recently I spent a wonderful weekend at a retreat with the women from my church. We shared stories and laughter. The weather was warm. The food was good. More importantly we shared our faith and encouraged one another. We spent time discovering some of the different spiritual gifts that God gives to each of us. One of my gifts is faith, which is defined as an unshakable trust and deep conviction that God faithfully and reliably keeps promises.
I was a little surprised to discover this. The fact is I have often questioned God. I sometimes wonder if the Almighty really does hear my prayers. Doubt is a constant part of my faith. Then I look around me and see God's wonders, count my blessings, and I feel the presence of the Divine in my life. Like the apostle Paul I seem to live and move and have my being in God. (Acts 17:28). This does not take away the frequent doubt I feel. Faith is something that cannot be proven. Doubt is an inherent property of faith. The writer of Hebrews alluded to this this when he wrote, “Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.” (Hebrews 11:1)
I have never moved a mountain. I have prayed fervently for something that seemed so right and so good and not received the answer I sought. In my pain and anger I have yelled at God and questioned why bad things had happened. And like Job I have found that I can only trust that God is smarter than me and that God's plans are for my good.
“I do believe; help thou my unbelief.” (Mark 9:24)
La Liga là gì? Lịch sử hình thành giải đấu
11 months ago
8 comments:
I love the book of Job!..
God gave Job the most poetically eloquent dressing down in the history of,.well,..history.
'Where were you when I laid the foundations of the Earth?'..I love that stuff. :)
Mark 9:24 is one of my favorites....
There are more times than not when i wish we lived closer....you could take me to church with you and I would have gone with you to the retreat. Have I told you I have never read the bible...not one full page and I couldn't even tell you what 11:1 means.s
We can't help ourselves from thinking of God as a person. I believe God is Love. I believe in Love. Love gets you through those horrible times.
And faith is based on doubt. Otherwise it is knowledge.
As a clergy spouse, I sometimes have to remind myself to forget about the 'business' of religion and focus on G-d. The longer DH has been in the pulpit the harder it gets.
It's also difficult to find 'your' pastor when you're married to one.
Rosemary, I wish you could have been at the retreat too. I would love to have time to sit and vist. The numbers at the end of the name of the book refer to chapter and verse. Hebrews 11:1 menas the quote is from the 11th chapter and 1st vers of the book of Hebrews.
JM, Religion can very easily get in the way of faith. It is hard to step back from the people and their problems and see the Almighty.
That's only the beginning...
Sounds like an awesome time well spent mom :)
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