“If you have abandoned one faith, do not abandon all faith. There is always an alternative to the faith we lose. Or is it the same faith under another mask?” ~Graham Greene, a British AuthorI grew up in a conservative Christian Evangelical family. When we say evangelical, we put supremacy on the divine inspiration of the bible and as the sole basis of the Christian faith, salvation by faith through the death of the Lord Jesus Christ and His deity, and that eternal salvation of the soul is purely the grace of God, and albeit our lives should be conducted to reflect it. This core belief is the common ground for most, if not all, evangelical churches. I still cling to these fundamental Christian tenets.
However, I must confess, that I live the contrary. Reason, more often, dictates. It takes precedence over faith in many of my dealings. While I continue to believe that the Christian faith stands on reasonable teachings, I sway. I doubt. I live like Thomas most of the time -“unless I see the nail holes in His hands and touch them, will I believe.”
It is not that I have abandoned my ‘faith,’ I simply reason. However, in times of desperate needs, when reasons will not suffice, I must admit too that only faith can really strengthen my moorings.
How about you?
I tend to operate more like you. Maybe getting older and becoming wiser both have a lot to do with it.
ReplyDeleteYeah. I think so too. Also, growing older makes us a little more discerning and reflective. So we do not simply believe without a reason.
ReplyDeleteI believe its important to note that God gave us both a heart and a brain, so He must have intended for us to use both. We should never assume that we know everything, and that we do not need to humbly submit to being taught by the Holy Spirit, but we should also not assume that every emotion we feel is good and should be acted upon.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you there Reg.
ReplyDeleteGuidance from the above is essential in our daily affair. It is a sin to assume that we have an answer for everything. That is why faith is called believing for things unknown (to man's senses) and hoping for better things.
As we mature though, I observed, we tend to leave our child-like faith and allow for more room to reason. How I wish I could have both. Then maybe, I will believe more and more often.