Explanation - Technically it is not a soapbox. It is an old apple crate. It's missing a few slats and a bit worm eaten. If I stand on it very carefully it provides a platform from which I may rant at the world.
Disclaimer - All the opinions expressed in these rants are mine. My wife often reminds me (when I start expressing my opinions) that I am "often wrong, but never uncertain".
A loss of faith
When I was young I was fascinated by magicians. I loved their tricks and believed in their magic. The ability to flick a wand and make a bouquet of flowers instantly appear was amazing. I could watch that and other tricks over and over and enjoy the magic every time. Then I learned the trick. I saw the cheap paper flowers pop out of the wand, and the magic was lost. From then on it didn't matter what show I saw, how much of a showman the magician was, how great the costumes, the lights, the effects, the magic was gone. I didn't believe.
Faith is the belief in something unseen but true.
This past Saturday I was at the store stocking up on a few essentials. I waited in line with a group of folks with carts filled with snacks and party food. They chatted and ribbed each other about the up coming big game and the parties they had planned. Every once in a while the conversation would die and fear would creep into their faces and eyes. Fear of lost jobs and an uncertain future. When I looked in their eyes I could see the fear and understand it. I could also see that look I had when I stopped believing the magic. These people have lost faith in the system. They don't believe it will get better. They have seen the trick and aren't buying the sales pitch that should restore confidence and fix everything.
Faith is the belief in something real even when you don't understand it or can't see it. When you realize that it isn't real, that it is all an illusion, faith evaporates.
I stood there in the store surrounded by these hopeless people, who wanted to believe, but no longer could, and I too felt fear for the future.
3 comments:
Deep breaths my friend... deep, slow... then go take a walk. Our group of neighborhood friends get together weekly and lately this same feeling has crashed down on our otherwise joyful conversations. Deep breaths... literally, we all take a deep breath, resolve that we, individually, are doing everything we have within our own power to create change... then we move on.
Do NOT... I repeat... do NOT stop moving at any point. I spent a week getting moving again after stopping to really think about the whole thing. I lost my faith and my hope. I stopped. Thank the gods Jason has the ability to get me moving again.
... put one foot in front of the other...
Breath, my friend...
Faith is a SUBSTANCE..the evidence of things hoped for that as of yet remain unseen. What is that substance? ACTION. It is by this action you are actually co-creating your own future and I personally think, by having only looked at your blog for a few months that you are in action whether it seems so or not. This is the one blog that I can get my husband to read...it is so much like what we live daily. All your trials and triumphs are not unique, and in that we find hope as well. We can do this thing. Keep following what you know to do. God places desires in our heart to lead the way to where He wants us to be....and He always reserves His remnant, His tiny flock, His anawim. Be not afraid.-Jan
Ohhh I have not lost faith. Call my naive, or an eternal optimist but I still believe that life is great and so is our country. Yes we have hit a bump but I believe that bump is like a toddler touching the stove. He does it once and then learns that it is hot. I believe that at least for the near future we have learned our lessons about greed, debt, and self indulgence. Now I'm not saying that applies to any but individuals...corporations are much slower to learn.
No I have not lost faith at all. I believe that this is a lesson we needed to learn and it will make us better in the long run.
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