In the Mind of a Fish

As I continue to ramble on about faith I realize that it's probably because I haven't said enough about it to make it so that I feel I have completely covered what I want to cover. So - on I go...

The problem of faith doesn't rest on what faith is, or even who the faith is attributed to or who or what I have faith in as much as it is what I think about it.

If I have faith that a cow can produce milk for me or even that I can go to the store and purchase milk with the money I have in my pocket, that faith will probably prove true. It is faith that makes my hope real enough that I act on it and head off to the store with money in my pocket. I am resting my faith in the cow and I attribute the faith I have in my experience that milk comes from a cow, so, I have faith in the cow.

Faith is faith is faith is faith. No matter what you are putting your faith in and no matter what the goal of your faith is. So that isn't a problem.

It's hard to explain the problem, but I think that it is a serious one. In the center of a faith without this problem, swirls hope, honor, love and humility. The problem arises when faith is considered to be a status symbol or an indication of rank or accomplishment. This seems to happen very easily in the Christian religion.

The whole of faith rests in grace and grace is started and finished in love, honor and humility. And it is really grace that I want to talk about because if grace is our badge of honor, then faith turns from a badge to a beam of light that displays the glory of the one in whom I hope. It is faith, hope and love that animate grace.