Sep 22, 2015
The Faith Thing
Pastor Scott Hausrath North Loup, NE
This morning, as I was sitting in the North Loup Cafe getting ready to eat breakfast with some friends, one of my neighbors asked if she could speak with me when I had some time. After breakfast I went to talk with her, and she said that she had a story to tell me.
She told me that she had never been a regular churchgoer, or a very spiritual person, but a few weeks ago she had a vision that changed everything. In her vision, she saw herself on her knees in a church, praying and asking God to relieve some of the heavy burdens she was feeling. When I asked her if He had done this, she said yes, God had lifted those burdens from her. The thing she said that struck me the most was that she finally understood “the faith thing.” After many years of misunderstanding and judging others for living a life of faith, she finally “got it” when God just gave it to her.
What about you? Do you understand “the faith thing”? Are you struggling, trying to “get” faith? Do you believe that you need to do something in order to have the kind of faith that every other Christian seems to have?
A typical dictionary definition of “faith” goes something like this: “confidence or trust in a person or thing.” When we talk about our Christian faith, we tend to focus on the first part of this definition: confidence and trust. We focus on trying to build a stronger trust in God. Perhaps this is our reaction to an often-memorized Scripture passage, Hebrews 11:6a, which states that, without faith it is impossible to please God. We want to please God, so we try to build up our faith in Him.
I’m wondering, however, if we might be going about this backwards. What if we were to focus on the second part of the definition, instead of the first part? Instead of
focusing on confidence and trust, what if we focused on the person or thing that is the object of our confidence and trust? If we “get” God, we won’t need to “get” faith, because I believe He will give us the faith we so desire.
A wonderful way to start getting God is to look to the second part of that Hebrews passage. Hebrews 11:6b says that, because anyone who comes to Him must
believe that He exists and that He rewards those who earnestly seek Him.
These are two truths that are foundational for our connection with God. Of course we must first believe that He exists; otherwise we’d be fools to pursue something/someone that is not there. Secondly, the fact that God rewards those who earnestly seek Him is the invitation we need to head out on our journey toward Him.
But take a closer look at the verse. It’s not calling us to seek faith; it’s calling us to seek God. That’s what I’m talkin’ ‘bout! Scripture calls us not to religion about God, but to relationship with God. May our goal be God, and nothing less. Then, along with Himself, He will provide us with everything else we need, including faith.
Would you like to talk more about this faith thing? I encourage you to join us next year in Houghton, New York, as we explore other facets of our Christian faith, and as we dive into the subjects of family and education. It will be a very rich week. Please join us, and add to the richness.
