Increasingly, we live in an age that finds it hard to trust.
Cynical and unsure, suspicious and pessimistic, unable to enjoy the gifts we
have when they are right in front of our eyes, we vote reluctantly or not at
all, despair of our political choices (“They’re all crooks anyway”), assume the
moral bankruptcy of every institution on our society (“Government does not have
a problem, government is the problem”). Facts don’t seem to matter; weird
conspiracy theories emerge at every turn. We live in an age that finds it easy
to suspect and increasingly difficult to trust.
That is not just too bad. It creates an environment where
faith becomes more and more difficult. The spiritual life is all about trust.
We grown spiritually when we trust in God and not by covering our flank and
greeting every new opportunity with suspicion and mistrust. We simply don’t
grow when we think that way. Rather, we shrink from a full and active life.
The abundant healing of Christ readily washes over us but
only the heart that is open can avail itself of it. Those who have open hearts
know how possible life seems when one dares to believe and acts on that faith.
It is the at the root of a confident life.
It becomes, in a way, a self-fulfilling prophecy – this trust.
The more I trust in the goodness of God and its action in my world, the more
evidence I have for it and I am able to see more opportunities for its impact.
It is this way that I become one who builds up rather than one who tears down.
No comments:
Post a Comment