Faith is so important to us and to others. But it’s not easy. It is certainly not for the weak of heart. It can be scary to let go of the things we might hold onto the tightest. But when we do, that faith can shine a light to others to show them the way forward with hope and motivation. Faith is personal, but those who look to us as an example are watching.
You can judge the quality of their faith
from the way they behave.
Discipline is an index to doctrine.
— Tertullian
Recently, we were driving on a busy road in Nashville to host a leadership retreat when ahead I noticed a man walking on the shoulder doing maintenance with a weed whacker.
As vehicles sped by, he stayed focused on the work, mostly facing away from traffic.One distraction, a slight daydream, even a nod of the head could become disastrous. That's a high level of faith in the drivers so close to him, with a slight margin for error.
At times, we all have to step out with that weed whacker faith to get the job done.
Faith is taking the first step even when
you don't see the whole staircase.
— Martin Luther King Jr
Everyone relies on faith because life is impossible without placing our trust in people, in principles, in practices, in possibilities, in plausibility, and in promises.
Faith emerges from a deliberate confidence, a choice of commitment among options. Faith is more than endurance through suffering—it activates hope and motivation. Faith provides perspective to see beyond the emotions of the present moment in order to release the need to have a sense of control in deference to greater purpose.
If fear is cultivated it will become stronger,
if faith is cultivated it will achieve mastery.
— John Paul Jones
Faith is personal but also public, revealed in the obvious characteristics of behavior.
Appraisals of faith are far less complicated than evaluations of intellectual mastery because we leave ample verbal and non-verbal evidence of what we actually believe. The disciplines we practice daily determine our own quality of life, but they also influence and instruct those around us who either endure or enjoy our presence.
When we rehearse the habits of faith that produce excellence, we become the light in the journey of those who count on us for it.
