Practical and
Pragmatic Faith for Daily Living
The
Bible defines faith in Hebrews 11:1, “Faith is the substance of things hoped
for and the evidence of things unseen.”
Quite probably, definitions of faith vary according to the individuals
offering them. Regardless of how you
define faith, a question still remains as to its qualitative and quantitative
and practical and pragmatic dimensions in daily living. Simply put, how do you live as a person of
faith in twenty-first century United States?
Genuine
faith combines humility and intelligence.
Some persons argue faith begins when reason exhausts its resources. Do you employ faith only for matters that the
scientific method and technology are unable to describe and explain? Is a Petri dish the only reasonable and
reliable means of verifying truth? The
explosion of knowledge which replicates itself every five years in most fields
combined with a comprehensive uncritical acceptance of Darwinism and its
corollaries tend to undermine the importance of humility in acquiring and
practicing faith. Unless a person is
honest, open-minded and willing, it is difficult for him to have faith in
Almighty God. Brilliance may impede a
person’s progress toward faith. It
easily lends itself to self-reliance.
Yet, it stands to reason that faith is unnecessary if you can prove your
hypotheses and repetitively substantiate your findings as evidence of
truth. It is imperative to submit human
intellect to the Infinite knowledge and perfect will of God Almighty. Humility is a primary and non-negotiable step
in progressing towards practical and pragmatic faith that enriches daily
living.
Visualization
is a mental and practical picture of a future manifestation of faith. Seeing something with natural eyes is not
enough. Practical faith means taking the
next right step. “Take an action and let
go of the result.” This popular saying
releases someone from hopelessness and helplessness. An open mind allows a person to follow God’s
leading and guidance in pursuit of his heartfelt desires. Sometimes, it is necessary to see it before
you can touch it. George Lucas, creator
of the Star Wars trilogy, proffers
“If you can conceive it, you can achieve it.”
“Willingness
is the key to faith.” It is simplistic
openness of mind and heart to trust God’s will is best in every
circumstance. It does not matter whether
you understand every detail. It
particularly does not matter if details seem adversarial, negative or
counterproductive. Still, you press
forward with a dogged determination to achieve and succeed with all due
humility believing that a loving Heavenly Father will always seek your very
best. Rise each morning with genuine
desire to believe experientially and relationally that Almighty God is your
Infinite Intelligence.
How
do you utilize practical and pragmatic faith in daily living? Take the next right action as God leads
you. Again, faith is more than a
theoretical concept or code of creeds.
In its most concrete form, it is cumulative choices to follow divine
guidance. Faith empowers you to take the
necessary steps to manifest your heart’s deepest desires. David’s faith in building the temple
motivates him to prepare for its construction years by storing furnishings,
decorative items, precious minerals and other necessary items. David gives Solomon, his son and heir, the
blueprints for building. Though the
temple would be built after his death, David had faith that this deep desire of
his heart would come to fruition. He
accordingly exercised his faith in preparing for the temple’s
construction. Because of David’s very
practical and pragmatic faith, Solomon and the persons who did the actual
building had very little to design and acquire.
David took the next right steps toward his heartfelt dream.
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