What do you believe and why?

I am in the school of “faith.”That is not unusual for a Christian. Faith is basic to Christianity. Actually, faith is basic to all religions and to life in general.

Every person has the innate ability to believe. Faith –believing – is an active part of our lives. Daily we put our trust and confidence in numerous things or people, without even thinking about it. Often we take faith for granted, rather than stopping to consider what faith really is and what, if anything, it means to our lives.

It is important to know WHAT we believe and determine the focus, or object(s) of our faith.

· As we sit on a chair, we believe in the law of gravity and assume that the chair will support our weight. 

· When we go to sleep at night, we trust that the sun will come up in the morning and we will have a new day. We trust in and depend on the seasons of nature.

· Healthy people, without even thinking, walk and move with no problems and build their lives around a busy schedule that involves physical strength and activity. We take for granted our next breath.

· Many people get up in the morning and go to work at a job, trusting that they will receive a pay check for their hours of work.

We walk through life, rarely considering what we believe, until those things we have trusted fail.

· For example, if, when you were young, you ever had someone pull the chair out from under you just as you sat down, causing you to fall on the floor, you might hesitate before you put your whole weight on a chair.

· You may take food, shelter and a job for granted…until you lose your job. Then you begin to question how you will feed and clothe yourself or your family.
· Your life may be active and routine until you have an accident or are diagnosed with a major health issue which can change your life instantly.

These are some simple examples of how we live our lives believing and expecting certain things to happen.

Our beliefs are influenced by our experience, what our parents or teachers have taught us, what we have seen in the media or in other peoples’ lives, or a convincing friend. Often we are trained to believe certain things. But personal experience can completely and instantly change our belief system and override what we have been taught.

It is absolutely critical for us to understand the power and the responsibility we have to examine and choose what we believe and what we do not believe. We are not to simply accept statements as fact without considering them first. If we do not have a sound foundation for our beliefs, we can be easily influenced by advertisers, politicians, or anyone with a personal agenda who uses emotional and persuasive speech. I personally do not want to be ignorant or manipulated by emotions or human reasoning that sounds good but is not truth. Our choices are our responsibility.

Many people know what they believe, but don’t stop to consider why they believe it. I am examining not only those things I trust or take to be true, but even the foundations for those beliefs. Will you, too, consider the following questions?

· How do I define truth?

· What do I trust, even without taking time to consider? And why? Do I trust in the world systems of government, education, economics?

· Am I easily persuaded by the power of words or emotional appeal? Or do I need to know historical and documented facts before I accept something as truth.

· Does it matter what I believe? Or do I think that sincerity is more important than what I believe?

· What do I believe about people? Are people born basically good? If so, what makes some good and some bad? Which am I, a good person or a bad person? Why?

· Do I trust people? Do I distrust people? If so, what happened to make me distrust or trust them?

· What do I believe about God? Is there a God? If there is, what is He like? How do I know? Where did my concept of God come from? Does it matter?

· What do I believe about myself? Why was I born? Is there a purpose for my life? If there is, how can I find it? If there is not, then what motivates my life each day?

· Am I totally satisfied with my life?

These questions might seem insignificant or a waste of time to even consider. And if you believe that, then you will probably not even read as far as this sentence. Or you may quickly answer the questions without thinking or rethinking them, believing that you already know the complete answer.

These questions are important to some core issues of life and of our world. If you are willing to take a few minutes to consider each one, it could be life-changing. The concept of what we believe and why we believe it are basic to who we are and what we do. As the world changes, and as my understanding grows I periodically revisit the issue of faith and check the basis for my beliefs.

Faith reaches far in to our being and is a defining issue of our lives. Will you open your heart and mind to consider what you believe and why you believe it?