Religious faith is a concept about which many have difficulty getting their minds around. Believing in an unseen god, hoping in certain promises proclaimed to be true millennia ago, and trusting after so long that it could still possibly be true is just too big a mountain for many to climb. They don’t see the rationale; they don’t see the point in believing in stuff science can’t prove.
Yet, those same people display faith in their lives all the time. Every time they climb aboard a subway, get on an airplane, or hop into their cars, they are demonstrating faith. As they begin their days, they hope to be where they plan to be, and, if you ask them, they will most assuredly state their expectation of arriving there safely. If there is doubt, it is overwhelmed by confidence. They have faith in the vehicles transporting them and in the skills of those operating them. None of it can be proved at the outset, but they have confidence nonetheless. And no one thinks it strange.
You also see faith exhibited routinely by sports fans. At the start of every season, fans are hopeful that this will be the year their team wins it all, and this is particularly true of fans of teams who play particularly well. I just watched one of the most exciting postseasons in Major League Baseball, with the Kansas City Royals seeking to win the World Series (apologies to my international readers for an obvious American habit of using “world champions” when in reality, the only teams involved are American or Canadian). Throughout the postseason games, Royals fans truly believed their team could win it all. They had hope and confidence. The same was true with fans of all the playoff teams. And no one thought it strange.
The reality is people from all walks of life demonstrate faith every day. They trust when they get into the shower and turn the handle that water will come pouring down. They can’t prove it will, but they trust it will. And when they pour the milk over their morning cereal, they have confidence it is not poisonous to ingest. And when they grab lunch at a local restaurant, they trust the cooks in the kitchen are preparing their food in a healthy manner and they won’t soon after be suffering from food poisoning. They walk with assurance through a crosswalk, often on their phones, that traffic will remain at a halt until they are through to the other side.
None of the things in life that we often take for granted or passionately believe in can be proved absolutely. There is always faith involved, hoping for and having assurance in things we cannot see or prove. So, while religious faith may seem “out there” by many, the truth is we all live by faith. Every day. And what increases our faith are the outcomes. They give us confidence and assuredness to continue “walking in faith.” The question is: if we can have faith in such mundane things in life such as subways and sports teams, what is so strange about having faith in the Creator of the universe, for which we can demonstrate positive outcomes as well?
Today, recognize the world demonstrates faith every day as it goes about its business. There is nothing strange about having faith. If people question your faith in God, then ask them why they have faith in their lives. It could lead to a fascinating discussion and an opportunity to give the reasons for the hope within you (I Peter 3:15).
© Jim Musser 2014
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