Nothing is more frustrating than a faith that has lost its force. To be sure, faith is a force – a rampaging force that breaks out from the web of uncertainties and cuts deep into the realm of hope. Faith challenges the status quo and removes the covering over the mysterious. It latches out of the den of lethargy onto the tartan track for a vigorous run. It oozes out like a smoke long denied its freedom. The initial push of faith can easily be felt. The enthusiasm is infectious.
There can be no faith without action. Faith is active. The inertia must be overcome for anyone to move forward. And there comes faith to the rescue – breaking from the hold of inertia at a speed the status quo cannot match. The longer the inertia has held sway, the more drastic the break. It is a victory for faith, as the inertia looks on in disbelief.
How long does faith’s victory last? It rarely lasts the distance. It often fizzles out before we finish spelling the word F-A-I-T-H. We lose the steam no sooner we engage the gear of faith. The result? Unfinished Projects. Great ideas lost to the pressure of life. Veritable skills not deployed. Hopes dashed too soon. Crashed marriages. Businesses that have lost their steam.
What are we missing out? Are we wrong to be enthusiastic about a project, be it spiritual, social, economic or political? Are we wrong to through the force of faith birth a new idea? We certainly are not wrong. The God we serve commands us to live by faith. He says we can’t even please Him without faith. If we can’t please Him, then we can’t have access to all that He has in store for us. Life becomes a bore without faith. Progress of individual and society lies in the daring faith that sees beyond the limitations of the present.
Could the problem be that we misunderstand faith? I would think so. Two descriptions of faith from the Scriptures would readily reveal the shallowness of our understanding of this important subject. The Bible says, “Faith works by love.” The implications of this statement are monumental. If we recall that God is love, then we can conclude that the realm of love is the realm where God inhabits and exercises His nature. Can there be daring faith in love? Of course, yes! By the way, where else can daring faith be found if not in love? In one dark corner of our minds, we think love is docile and unadventurous. We think if we love God, we are likely to accept the status quo and submit to whatever the situation presents to us. We think righteousness, a derivative of love, is passive. Just because love constraints us to do things right, does not mean we are lame ducks.
The daring that ultimately wins does things right. What we often think is love, is not love. We should look for another name for it. To be sure, we derive our deepest hunger for venturing in God’s love. God’s love is compelling, pushing us beyond the limits of our ability. It is in God’s love that we derive our true identity. It is in His love, not outside of it, that we have our minds renewed and learn to walk in the path of righteousness. And you know what? Righteousness exalts! Without God’s love, we lose the sense of security and the warmth of His affection. We also lose the assurances of His promises. Imagine, standing alone in your daring effort without the security of His affection and the assurances of His promises! Besides, we lose the basis to be tenacious in the face of daunting challenges that venturing out brings.
Tenacity! That brings us to the second description of faith. The Bible states unequivocally that faith works with patience. True faith is set in God’s love. But faith stands on one leg without patience. Patience is not a shadow of faith; it is its twin – its inseparable Siamese twin. Patience is not an appendage that can be divorced from the force of faith. It is intrinsically and eternally tied to faith. Patience, like faith, is a force. It is not docile. It is an active force that unleashes itself, also by love, to change the course of human history. Patience is not standing by waiting for something to happen. Patience makes things happen. It is the quality of our divine character that enables us to keep believing and doing things right through the thick and thin of life. It is foolhardy to see faith as an isolated virtue. Faith loses its force in the absence of patience. Patience does not ask: how long would it take for me to wait for the promise? Even when the pursuit or the daring effort hits a brick wall, patience stays active. It strengthens the force of faith as it seeks new ways to reach the goal or revise the goal. Patience comes in handy at the time of seeking new discoveries in the journey of faith. It keeps the vision in view, while it assists in the charting of new paths and the evolution of new tactics. Patience’s toughness guarantees us staying power. We just refuse to give up or give in. Even when suspending or abandoning an idea becomes inevitable, patience provides us the covering, assuring us the years of effort have not been a waste. It helps us to see the way out through the piles of ‘defeat’.
Women with proper views of faith, see life as one of a series of relentless pursuits. Life throws a challenge at them, and quickly they find solace in God’s love. As they regale in that love, a compelling force of faith rises up on the inside of them. They boldly assert their severance from the inertia.
They celebrate their victory over the status quo. And then, they match the force of their faith with the force of their patience. They stay the course because of the unleashed force of patience. Because they endure to the end, they experience deliverance, raise the performance bar, break the limits… The world remembers them long after they have gone.