Hello world! For those of you who are new, welcome to the Luminstruct blog! I am currently working on a "365 Word Project" where everyday I will be posting a reflection on a word and today's word is "Faith".
Before we go any further, I would like to say that religion will be brought into this post and I will be discussing what I believe. I am aware my understandings of religion are biased based on the mindset of people I have come in contact with as well as my background of experiences, just know it is not my intention to disrespect any members of the online community. So with that being said, let's dive in!
We have now had "Hope" and "Love" as words in this blog, so it was all just a matter of time before "Faith" was added to the mix. In yesterday's post, I mentioned how we can unlock the superhero within by having hope and the drive to carry on. In my eyes, the "drive to carry on" is called faith. This is no ordinary level of determination, but a level that is so large that you have to feel it within every bone of your body. There should be no question in the world that it is true and it should hold the highest level of trust in your heart. Martin Luther King Jr. once said, "Faith is taking the first step, even when you don't see the whole staircase." This is why most people turn to the ideas of religion when discussing faith, sometimes there just isn't anything else in this world that you could be more sure of than an almighty power.
When it comes to my beliefs of faith, I feel like they contrast with many of my friends and even family. Starting with some of the more simple concepts, the first belief I hold is the belief in love. I also believe that God is love, thus bad-a bing bad-a boom, I believe in God. It amazes me that as time goes on, I have run into more and more people who have even questioned this belief. As an old biology student, I use science to back up my religious ideas. I feel as though many people would see this as an odd method of thought, but in my eyes, just the statistical chances of me writing words in my room for another person to read holds such an astronomically low likelihood that I don't see any possible other way to explain this other than through the works of a higher being. And of course I understand the working of the internet and by no means do I claim the internet is a god, but just the fact that we exist in this world to begin with amazes me. They are concepts like these, that you can feel deep within and know as truth.
Continuing with my faith journey, I believe Jesus did exist, but here is where I feel the major difference between me and the beliefs of the Catholic church and any other Christian groups may exist. Although I'm sure Jesus did exist as a person, I also understand time and stories can be warped throughout the centuries and one thing can be changed into something completely different. Imagine the game of telephone circling for over 2,000 years! So here is my question, what would happen if Jesus had not done all of those miracles? What if he was just a man who loved his neighbors? The last thing I want to do is belittle other people's beliefs, but there is no way of knowing the truth until we die and go to heaven. I consider a man who loved would be enough of a role model for me to follow, but some people need the miracles. I have had a lot of long conversations with my friends about these ideas and I am inspired by their faith in the miracles, in fact I used to hold this faith as well. It saddens me that I have lost this aspect of my faith over time. I think it is because of this lost that makes me only hold onto my faith in love so much stronger.
I have now read and reread this post many times and have gone back and forth on posting it, but by not posting it, I would be undoing all the work I have put in over the past few weeks. I pray this insight into my faith does not leave you angry or upset. I can only hope that this may spur a discussion about your own faith journey and may bring to light any possible stories you may want to share with me or others. If willing to share, I would love to hear your faith story. It can be about religious ideas, or maybe just beliefs that give you the drive to carry on!
If you wish to share, you can send me an email here.
Before we go any further, I would like to say that religion will be brought into this post and I will be discussing what I believe. I am aware my understandings of religion are biased based on the mindset of people I have come in contact with as well as my background of experiences, just know it is not my intention to disrespect any members of the online community. So with that being said, let's dive in!
We have now had "Hope" and "Love" as words in this blog, so it was all just a matter of time before "Faith" was added to the mix. In yesterday's post, I mentioned how we can unlock the superhero within by having hope and the drive to carry on. In my eyes, the "drive to carry on" is called faith. This is no ordinary level of determination, but a level that is so large that you have to feel it within every bone of your body. There should be no question in the world that it is true and it should hold the highest level of trust in your heart. Martin Luther King Jr. once said, "Faith is taking the first step, even when you don't see the whole staircase." This is why most people turn to the ideas of religion when discussing faith, sometimes there just isn't anything else in this world that you could be more sure of than an almighty power.
When it comes to my beliefs of faith, I feel like they contrast with many of my friends and even family. Starting with some of the more simple concepts, the first belief I hold is the belief in love. I also believe that God is love, thus bad-a bing bad-a boom, I believe in God. It amazes me that as time goes on, I have run into more and more people who have even questioned this belief. As an old biology student, I use science to back up my religious ideas. I feel as though many people would see this as an odd method of thought, but in my eyes, just the statistical chances of me writing words in my room for another person to read holds such an astronomically low likelihood that I don't see any possible other way to explain this other than through the works of a higher being. And of course I understand the working of the internet and by no means do I claim the internet is a god, but just the fact that we exist in this world to begin with amazes me. They are concepts like these, that you can feel deep within and know as truth.
Continuing with my faith journey, I believe Jesus did exist, but here is where I feel the major difference between me and the beliefs of the Catholic church and any other Christian groups may exist. Although I'm sure Jesus did exist as a person, I also understand time and stories can be warped throughout the centuries and one thing can be changed into something completely different. Imagine the game of telephone circling for over 2,000 years! So here is my question, what would happen if Jesus had not done all of those miracles? What if he was just a man who loved his neighbors? The last thing I want to do is belittle other people's beliefs, but there is no way of knowing the truth until we die and go to heaven. I consider a man who loved would be enough of a role model for me to follow, but some people need the miracles. I have had a lot of long conversations with my friends about these ideas and I am inspired by their faith in the miracles, in fact I used to hold this faith as well. It saddens me that I have lost this aspect of my faith over time. I think it is because of this lost that makes me only hold onto my faith in love so much stronger.
I have now read and reread this post many times and have gone back and forth on posting it, but by not posting it, I would be undoing all the work I have put in over the past few weeks. I pray this insight into my faith does not leave you angry or upset. I can only hope that this may spur a discussion about your own faith journey and may bring to light any possible stories you may want to share with me or others. If willing to share, I would love to hear your faith story. It can be about religious ideas, or maybe just beliefs that give you the drive to carry on!
If you wish to share, you can send me an email here.
Take Away:
Tomorrow's Topic: Focus
