On a daily basis, I'm reminded constantly that my faith can't reside in the temporal. There is no room for me to put my faith in jobs, in money, in relationships and other seemingly gratifying worldly things. Time and time again, although my hope and attitude does not change, the realization that I must ground myself in that which is immovable is becoming more and more apparent. Faith by definition is belief in a promise. For faith to exist, the promise must exist and in that, for faith to continue, the promise must always exist or faith is let down and delusional.
The conclusion seems silly but it's so detrimental to our life that we believe and have faith in that which on this earth, never ends so that we may continue to fight the fight in the face of adversity. What is hindering is placing my faith in those things that don't truly exist and will let me down. The more I put my faith in the ideas and things that ultimately fail, the more discouraged I can become in believing and hoping that this temporal life can indeed sustain me through the thick and thin.
I can watch a tree sway in the wind, rain and hail of a hurricane and not lose itself in the midst of the storm. I ask myself, what does it take to stand tall in the depths of such chaos? But what's easy to see, is that the tree doesn't place its faith in the sun which helps it grow, or in the water or soil that gives it nutrients, it places it's faith in the roots it's planted deep into the ground. The roots sustain the tree's life by gripping to that which is immovable and solid. When the storm comes, the sun, the nutrients and the water don't help the tree from falling prey to the wind; only the roots sustain it.
Like a tree, I can't place my faith in money that surely provides for me food, or relationships that surely help me grow but my faith must be rooted deeply in the never-ending truth: that God sustains me through His promises.
"Therefore, everyone who hears these words of Mine and acts on them will be like a sensible man who built his house on the rock. The rain fell, the rivers rose, and the winds blew and pounded that house. Yet it didn't collapse, because its foundation was on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of Mine and doesn't act on them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. The rain fell, the rivers rose, the winds blew and pounded that house, and it collapsed. And its collapse was great!" Matthew 7:24-28
It takes money to live. Relationships are invaluable. Jobs and other worldly things give us the opportunity to live life more abundantly. But don't put your faith in the moveable objects, like sand, for they won't withstand the hurricane. Put your faith and trust in a God who knows the beginning and the end and will lead you to discover your purpose through His will. In the end, what is eternity compared to 100 years of life on earth? Put your faith in God and in what He's calling you to do. His purpose never fails.
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