What is Faith? {Genesis 29:31-35}
3:00 PM
Today
in America especially, we have been facing a crisis of staggering numbers. Between the sexual abuse scandals to just the
sheer numbers of people abandoning religion all together.
I
am a catholic convert of 30 years. My
upbringing was one of attending Sunday school, church services, vacation bible
school and a youth ministry. As a young
adult, just out of college, I joined a non-denominational church so that I
could play my flute in their orchestra.
Then I met my first husband and became catholic.
I
battled a question I often heard throughout my lifetime – “When did you become a Christian?”
You see, I didn’t have a date like my birthdate or my wedding date. And I spent a great deal of time wondering
why I didn’t have a date. Oh, I’ve
raised hand and offered my life to God a few times. I’ve prayed a prayer to trust Jesus, but I’ve
never had a date to coincide with my becoming a Christian.
I
read a wonderful explanation that said something to the effect that my date is
more of a process, and if you’ve ever read John Bunyon’s “Pilgrim’s Progress”,
you’ll agree, Christianity is a posture that progresses through your lifetime. You are constantly learning and growing and
changing.
I
joined a small group at our church which is a renewal group. There are several of these small groups going
on at the same time and they began because of the sex abuse scandal in the
Catholic Church. You don’t join these
groups knowing who will be participating. They are created based on your schedule, not who will be there.
The
first thing I noticed about my group is the foundation of why we haven’t left
the church. What we believe in is
faith. We believe in Jesus Christ, the
Son of God – the creator of the universe.
We believe in what the scriptures say.
The foundation of our faith cannot be shaken and we have HOPE. As believers, our faith is built on something
we cannot see. It’s a mystery. We are created with a hole in our hearts that
can only be filled with the love of God.
All
you have to do is read the bible and you will see scandal. Our readings today are scandalous. I personally have struggled to read these
verses and accept that Jacob had two wives and two concubines! WOW!
But the mysterious part of all of this is that God had a plan and He
took the unloved woman and gave her a son who became part of the lineage of the
life of Jesus.
The
reason I don’t leave my church or my faith in God, is because I have hope and
faith in the One who knows the plan; in the One who has done the
impossible. In the One who has shown us
if we believe in Him and trust in Him and obey Him, we will make it through
this process called life and enter into a union with Him in His heavenly
kingdom. We will make it through
scandals and hardships, just like we make it through the blessings and good
times.
While
we are here, we are building and we are surrounded by sexual abuse, torture,
murder, lies, and cheaters – bad things happen.
God has a plan. But just as Leah
realizes after her 4th son is born, we are to praise God even in the
midst of something bad. That doesn’t
mean that we are saying, “Oh thank you that I am unloved”, or “thank you that I
lost my job, or thank you my husband left me.”
It means that we praise God for His plan. That although this section of my life is
unpleasant, God sees me and loves me, and He will show me how to get through
this part.
Back
to my struggle with not having a date of when I became a Christian – it lies in
my Faith, which for as long as I can
remember, I’ve had. I was born with the
hole in my heart that only God could fill and on that I’ve been seeking Him
ever since.
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Here’s
a link to what the names mean of Leah’s son’s.
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