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FAITH & HOPE Hope springs eternal in the human breast: Man never is, but always to be blest. Alexander Pope (1688 - 1744) An Essay on Man (1734) Faith and hope have always been a part of my life; so much so that to separate them from me would be impossible, for I am grounded in their principles and truths. They make me who I am. Perhaps I received these gifts from my mother, who held onto her beliefs that someday she would make something of herself. Her views were always in the materialistic sense (big house, fancy car, lots of play cash, trips to exotic places...), as I’d watch her fail in frustration time and again, until one day, I pointed out to her in the Spiritual sense that she had made something of herself, in that she was the dutiful wife of a hard man to please, and the mother of four children that were blessed with good health and high intelligence that never marred the family name or to cause either parent serious embarrassment. When part of your life was raised in a ghetto, that is quite an accomplishment. As far as I can recall, faith and hope became intertwined and imbedded within me when I became electrocuted as a child and had to relearn all that was erased from my mind as well as to restrengthen my body that was now nothing more than a mass of jellied flesh. Certainly, no one would blame me for submitting to the cold, hard reality of having to spend the rest of my life in a wheelchair, but I dared to dream of running and playing with my friends once again as it used to be before the Accident. Through the faith and hope, and with my Creator constantly by my side, I eventually found the strength to go far beyond the wheelchair that not even at the time would I expect. In times of conflict and despair, I turn not only to the Lord for guidance, but to the faith and hope He expects me to have that continues to sustain me. Of the 66 books that make up the Bible, I perhaps turn more and more to the book of Hebrews and the 40 verses that make up the great Faith chapter known as number 11. Thus, if someone were to ask me what single verse of the Bible would characterize me, it would have to be the sixth verse of chapter 11 in Hebrews that states... But without faith it is impossible to please Him: for he that cometh to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him. If anyone ever wanted to please God, they must live a life by faith. Not a blind faith, but a strong, seeking, monomaniacal, working faith. This is something even I have found difficult at times to do, but knowing the intimate relationship I have with the Lord, I simply have no choice. I am continuously tested (and this does get more challenging as I grow older and wish to achieve a complete and comfortable lifestyle) in this area, but have discovered that I can keep the faith so long as I couple it with the hope that all will work out well and as planned by the One that asks us to cast all our burdens upon Him. As well, with each passing new year, I like to look back at the old one with fondness and gratitude that I was able to live it and look forward to expectant hope and anticipation of the new one ahead. What will it bring? Will it be better, worse or about the same as the previous year? What new changes in my life will this year bring, for good or for bad, that last year’s didn’t have? At times, thoughts such as these are exciting, and at other times, I dread to find out, just as faith, as Paul states in the very first verse of the great faith chapter, is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen, is both scary and exhilarating. Scary when having to take that first step, or leap, and exhilarating when the test has been completed and the end results are known. When the end of an old year approaches, I do hope and pray and have the faith that the new one will be better; more productive. That we can achieve a degree of peace unbeknownst before. That man will want to stop controlling his fellow man; that governments will finally cease wanting to enslave its people. That the world over can work together for the common good of all. Yes, I know these are childish thoughts, but are they not possible if more people the world over would just stand up and say enough is enough. The old way isn’t working. Let’s try another path... Perhaps I will have to wait until I enter the New World for thoughts such as I have (and I suspect millions more the world over have as well) to come to fruition, but so long as I live and breath, I won’t be stopped from hoping and praying and having the faith to better the time in which I live in now, and changing whatever circumstances I can with the Lord’s help and guidance. Would to God we can all do our part, whatever we are asked to do, to better our surroundings in our own area of the world, to make it better and more productive than when we first arrived. A little bit here, a little bit there... it all adds up to an incredible whole. Until Next Month, Kevin |
