FAITH (Anne Englert)

Have you noticed how often in the Gospel writings Jesus talks about faith?  
Sometimes he commends individuals for their faith:

When Jesus heard him, he was amazed and said to those who followed him, “Truly I tell you, in no one in Israel have I found such faith.”  (Matthew 8:10)

Then Jesus answered her, “Woman, great is your faith! Let it be done for you as you wish.” And her daughter was healed instantly.  (Matthew 15:28)

Jesus said to them, “Do you believe that I am able to do this?” They said to him, “Yes, Lord.” Then he touched their eyes and said, “According to your faith let it be done to you.” And their eyes were opened.” (Matthew 9:29)

On other occasions Jesus chides people for their lack of faith, calling them “you of little faith” and “you faithless generation” (Matt. 16:8, Mark 9:19), asking them “Where is your faith?” and “Have you still no faith?” (Luke 8:25, Mark 4:40).  His question recorded in Luke 18:8 haunts but also inspires me: “When the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?”

Clearly Jesus wants faith to be evident in the lives of his followers.  There are times when I figure that the reason I don’t get a clear answer from God or don’t receive the assurance and certainty I long for is because God is in the business of cultivating my faith.  If everything we want to know were completely spelled out in the pages of the Bible or in our prayer times, there would be no need for faith, no need for an ongoing relationship with God.  The writer of the book of Hebrews even goes so far as to say, “Without faith it is impossible to please God” (Hebrews 11:6).

How would you define faith?  Throughout the history of Christianity, the word faith has had four primary meanings, which professor and author Marcus Borg describes as follows:

• Faith as belief - giving mental assent to a statement or proposition (a matter of the head)
• Faith as trust - trusting God as loving creator, provider, and guide (a matter of the heart)
• Faith as fidelity, allegiance, faithfulness - commitment to God on a deep personal level
• Faith as a way of seeing - viewing reality as positive, life-giving, filled with the grace of God

When the Bible exhorts us to have faith, that means more than adopting the right beliefs; it means practicing a way of life modeled by Jesus, which is rooted in a relationship with God.  As has been said, “Faith is a verb;” it is something you do, something that results in action.

What if you want to increase your faith?  Faith is like a year-round garden; it is meant to grow and bear fruit and be kept alive.  If not nurtured and tended, our faith can wilt, shrivel up, and die.  Have any of you experienced that, as I have?  Faith can always be replanted, newly cultivated, watered, and pruned.  We ask God to plant in us seeds of faith, then soak up wisdom and inspiration from Scripture, the life of Jesus, creation, and words from fellow human beings created in God’s image.  We practice spiritual disciplines and open ourselves to the work of the Holy Spirit in manifold ways.  That may mean accepting “pruning” if some aspect of our faith needs correcting or expanding.  We seek to activate faith in our attitudes and actions, bearing the fruit our Gardener envisions.

How will you nourish your faith this Advent or express your faith this Christmas season?
Here is a song by Marty Haugen about walking by faith:

* See The Heart of Christianity: Rediscovering a Life of Faith (highly recommended) by Marcus Borg, chapter 2