While faith is magical, mysterious, and hard to pin down it must be something tangible that we can hold on to. It must be functional or it is fleeting.
If you truly long to walk alongside the king of the universe, at some point, or at many points, you will learn to lift your eyes from the pacing of your feet to the radiance of His presence. Yet, like any other practice, that tacit ability comes from repetitive focus on the habits that bring us closer to the throne. The life of faith is not one that falls easily into the laps of the noncommittal. Practice, failure, and application drive us much further than emotion ever could. When the feeling is lacking, the habits must keep us moving forward. That type of faith is the function we need, we long for us to prepare us for the revelations that only He can bring. During the storms, the explosions, the droughts - He speaks. Are you able to hear? Or are you waiting on the "feeling?"
The follower follows. He does not wait for the master to arrive, he goes out seeking the master. She does not wait for the lesson to find her, she searches for the lesson in the words and actions of the teacher. The follower is observant and ready, knowing that the master is possibly giving a gift of knowledge in every moment, in every interaction.
Step after step, we must keep pace with the leader. Over time, we know His heart, we move toward His leanings, we see with His eyes. All the while, it is the walking that makes us aware. It is in our nature to be moving. Life is moving us forward. Let us think of our faith in the same way. A movement. An expedition. Continually striving to walk in step with the Christ.
The beginning of a functional faith is that of any journey...one step and then another.
If you truly long to walk alongside the king of the universe, at some point, or at many points, you will learn to lift your eyes from the pacing of your feet to the radiance of His presence. Yet, like any other practice, that tacit ability comes from repetitive focus on the habits that bring us closer to the throne. The life of faith is not one that falls easily into the laps of the noncommittal. Practice, failure, and application drive us much further than emotion ever could. When the feeling is lacking, the habits must keep us moving forward. That type of faith is the function we need, we long for us to prepare us for the revelations that only He can bring. During the storms, the explosions, the droughts - He speaks. Are you able to hear? Or are you waiting on the "feeling?"
The follower follows. He does not wait for the master to arrive, he goes out seeking the master. She does not wait for the lesson to find her, she searches for the lesson in the words and actions of the teacher. The follower is observant and ready, knowing that the master is possibly giving a gift of knowledge in every moment, in every interaction.
Step after step, we must keep pace with the leader. Over time, we know His heart, we move toward His leanings, we see with His eyes. All the while, it is the walking that makes us aware. It is in our nature to be moving. Life is moving us forward. Let us think of our faith in the same way. A movement. An expedition. Continually striving to walk in step with the Christ.
The beginning of a functional faith is that of any journey...one step and then another.
