Some people have faith. Some people don't.
Some people believe in God. Some people don't.
Some people are at peace in all things. Some people aren't.
All of these second sentences above could have been replaced with "most people", instead of "some people", and still would have been true. Unfortunately.
We tend to surround ourselves with people who are like us. This is normal, you are going to pick your friends based on things you have in common and can share in. However, this sometimes causes us to lose touch with the rest of society who are very different from you. I was reminded of this recently when I shared some unpleasant news regarding a person's illness with two people who are very close to me. First, let me say the immediate family was dealing with the unexpected and sudden news of this illness. We believe in God and His miraculous healing powers. We believe he is all-knowing and has a voice with which He talks to His people when His people are willing to listen. We firmly believe that NOTHING is above God, and therefore NOTHING is too big for God to handle, including any illness. So when we were discussing and "handling" this sudden news, we never lost our faith that God could take care of it. We dissected the news and the consequential procedures that would be needed and tried to learn as much as we could about this illness. But we did not lose faith or act like death was at the door.
When I shared the news of this illness with these two people I was reminded of how different people are. My closest friend who probably IS my best friend because of our shared faith and the fact that we can talk about anything together and pray together, took the news with complete faith. (Just as the immediate family was handling it). She actually knows something about this illness so she had lots of informed, detailed questions. But she did not act like it was a death sentence or was un-treatable, or un-survivable, or hopeless. In contrast, when I told the other person, I could immediately hear it in their voice (the sense of grief, sorrow, pity that someone would have if they had no faith). They didn't SAY anything bad, but you could pick it up in their countenance and physical reaction. They do not know God and His amazing power the way the people who displayed faith know God. It actually saddens me that so many people purport to be "Christians" and "believe in God", yet they don't let Him into their lives to have control of it. Let me tell you something, when God is in control of your life, you will never feel out-of-control!
There is such a huge difference in knowing God exists, and having Him be a part of your daily life. I wish this person (and everyone...myself as well) had a stronger relationship with God.
I wish this person had enough faith in God to not have that pity in their voice. Nobody needs negativity. But everybody needs faith.
Faith gives us hope.
Faith gives us courage.
Faith gives us strength.
Faith can be unwaivering.
Its up to us how much faith we have and therefore how hopeful or hopeless we become in our lives. God is always there. He is always waiting for His sheep to come home. He is the shepherd, we are the sheep. Remember, a shepherd will always take care of his sheep. Have faith.
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I believe in God and in His miracolous powers. But I cannot jump into conclusion when a person has so much or less faith. If I have a member of my family who has an illness, it is just normal to feel sad. We can't just be happy all the time. There will be a lot of changes. We feel sad that that person may have to give up a lot--perhaps a love of the game, or some other things. We are not perfect and we have our flaws. But what is important is that no matter how hard our struggles in life are, we still have hope and that we don't blame Him for what's happening.
ReplyDeleteLike what you said, there are people who are different from you.
God bless...