Faith Exemplified
Greetings,
This past summer my room mate and I decided to get into her car, known as the "silver-bullet", and take off cross country. She, is originally from South Carolina, I, from Illinois. For her this was indeed a cross country trip. We left from Kentucky and drove! Along the way we made stops (St. Louis, OKC, Amarillo, Albuquerque, Flagstaff, Grand Canyon, Vegas, Sequoia, Yosemite, San. Fran., Reno, Cheyenne, Kansas City) our goal was to get to San Fransisco. We were able to see dear friends and make new ones along the way. While a great extent of our trip was planned with complete accuracy, there were aspects that we took great freedom and chance with. We spent two days in Yosemite. That was the extent to our planning. We showed up, then planed and figured out what we wanted to do. Our plans changed and needed to be flexible. We hoped to see the falls there at Yosemite, but because of drought, we climbed a dry waterfall instead. There were trails we had heard about, but do to time there were not enough hours in the day to hike them. Flexibility, freedom and chance. We took a chance on the entire trip: that storms were not going arise, we took the chance that we would not have car troubles, and we took the chance that we would be safe and return back home. That's a lot of chance taking.
My fiancé will be graduating from University of Kentucky this coming May with his degree in Electrical Engineering. This past semester he took a probability class (which he hated). He expressed at one point that he hated this class because he wasn't able to follow or understand the material. I was a writing major, I have always been a writer. I try to stay as far away from math and mathematical concepts as much as possible. However, this concept of probability seems like it is going to catch up to me. Every time a chance is taken, the probability of outcomes narrows. Take for example two coins, you flip them both, the chance or probability that both will be heads would be 1/4. Now you have 16 coins, flip all of them, the chance or probability that all will be heads would be 1/23,936.(That's as in-depth into probability as I dare to go. I tried to educated myself here: http://www.pas.rochester.edu/~stte/phy104-F00/notes-2.html) To me that is a great deal of chance. And while on our cross-country road trip this summer that was a lot of chances to wage against two young women.
I dare say that this was not chance at all. This was faith that we would be brought back home safe. This was faith in mankind in the locations where we were staying. Faith, that the storms we were passing through would not take us down. We had faith, I have faith. There is someone who is very close to me who does not see this need in faith, this person is an open atheist and loves to debate and ask questions that prove to be very though provoking and questions that, to be quiet honest, I have never been asked before. I do really enjoy our conversations because it makes me take a deeper and harder look into what and why I believe. There are times where our discussions become blatant arguments that leaves us huffing and puffing. On one account the discussion ended with me stating: "you cannot understand any of this because you have no faith or belief in anything!" To this, this person retorted, "Define faith. What is faith?" I was not able to form a definition, at least not a definition that made sense. I stumbled in saying, "faith is the belief in something." Now this person wanted to define belief. What is belief? Just like before I stumbled...it is the faith in something or someone...I realized that my ability to articulate the basics and simplicity of my faith and belief was very circular. I was unable to define one without the other, which, in the end allowed both arguments to crumble and fail.
What is then, faith? I have found it! I have found faith! "Faith, faith is not the proof that something happened, but the probability that something happened." Chance and probability are synonyms and can be used interchangeably. I cannot define what faith in God is because it is not something can be proven, but it is something that can be exemplified. The same as I cannot define what faith in man is, but I can exemplify my faith in man. Faith is exemplified in the belief in a moral concept to guide ones life. Faith is exemplified in the trust one puts into this guiding force. Faith is exemplified through the life that is claiming to live by faith. My belief and faith is grounded in the knowledge that there must be something more. My drive in life is to know, experience, grow and understand what this "more" is.
Years ago, on the floor of a youth meeting hall, I gave my heart to Christ. The start of knowing the "more" was ignited. Years following, this Aldersgate moment, I gave my life to Christ. I gave up the need to find the answer, to search out the way. I accepted an understanding that I am not the one who searches, seeks-out, uncovers; I must simply accept. I learned about myself to keep my mind open and eagerly and willingly be open to new opportunities and possibilities. This has allowed me to pursue an undergraduate degree that I love, move forward into graduate level work, move to a different part of the country, take trips, fall in love, fall out of love...to fall in love again! Opportunities and possibilities have led to joy, heartache, safety, insecurity, relief, experience, an-extending family, friends, heartbreak, work and a life-time of more to come. My faith has led me to the acceptance of something more. It is time to go, live, experience and take joy in the more, wherever it may lead.
Blessings & Joy
This past summer my room mate and I decided to get into her car, known as the "silver-bullet", and take off cross country. She, is originally from South Carolina, I, from Illinois. For her this was indeed a cross country trip. We left from Kentucky and drove! Along the way we made stops (St. Louis, OKC, Amarillo, Albuquerque, Flagstaff, Grand Canyon, Vegas, Sequoia, Yosemite, San. Fran., Reno, Cheyenne, Kansas City) our goal was to get to San Fransisco. We were able to see dear friends and make new ones along the way. While a great extent of our trip was planned with complete accuracy, there were aspects that we took great freedom and chance with. We spent two days in Yosemite. That was the extent to our planning. We showed up, then planed and figured out what we wanted to do. Our plans changed and needed to be flexible. We hoped to see the falls there at Yosemite, but because of drought, we climbed a dry waterfall instead. There were trails we had heard about, but do to time there were not enough hours in the day to hike them. Flexibility, freedom and chance. We took a chance on the entire trip: that storms were not going arise, we took the chance that we would not have car troubles, and we took the chance that we would be safe and return back home. That's a lot of chance taking.
My fiancé will be graduating from University of Kentucky this coming May with his degree in Electrical Engineering. This past semester he took a probability class (which he hated). He expressed at one point that he hated this class because he wasn't able to follow or understand the material. I was a writing major, I have always been a writer. I try to stay as far away from math and mathematical concepts as much as possible. However, this concept of probability seems like it is going to catch up to me. Every time a chance is taken, the probability of outcomes narrows. Take for example two coins, you flip them both, the chance or probability that both will be heads would be 1/4. Now you have 16 coins, flip all of them, the chance or probability that all will be heads would be 1/23,936.(That's as in-depth into probability as I dare to go. I tried to educated myself here: http://www.pas.rochester.edu/~stte/phy104-F00/notes-2.html) To me that is a great deal of chance. And while on our cross-country road trip this summer that was a lot of chances to wage against two young women.
I dare say that this was not chance at all. This was faith that we would be brought back home safe. This was faith in mankind in the locations where we were staying. Faith, that the storms we were passing through would not take us down. We had faith, I have faith. There is someone who is very close to me who does not see this need in faith, this person is an open atheist and loves to debate and ask questions that prove to be very though provoking and questions that, to be quiet honest, I have never been asked before. I do really enjoy our conversations because it makes me take a deeper and harder look into what and why I believe. There are times where our discussions become blatant arguments that leaves us huffing and puffing. On one account the discussion ended with me stating: "you cannot understand any of this because you have no faith or belief in anything!" To this, this person retorted, "Define faith. What is faith?" I was not able to form a definition, at least not a definition that made sense. I stumbled in saying, "faith is the belief in something." Now this person wanted to define belief. What is belief? Just like before I stumbled...it is the faith in something or someone...I realized that my ability to articulate the basics and simplicity of my faith and belief was very circular. I was unable to define one without the other, which, in the end allowed both arguments to crumble and fail.
What is then, faith? I have found it! I have found faith! "Faith, faith is not the proof that something happened, but the probability that something happened." Chance and probability are synonyms and can be used interchangeably. I cannot define what faith in God is because it is not something can be proven, but it is something that can be exemplified. The same as I cannot define what faith in man is, but I can exemplify my faith in man. Faith is exemplified in the belief in a moral concept to guide ones life. Faith is exemplified in the trust one puts into this guiding force. Faith is exemplified through the life that is claiming to live by faith. My belief and faith is grounded in the knowledge that there must be something more. My drive in life is to know, experience, grow and understand what this "more" is.
Years ago, on the floor of a youth meeting hall, I gave my heart to Christ. The start of knowing the "more" was ignited. Years following, this Aldersgate moment, I gave my life to Christ. I gave up the need to find the answer, to search out the way. I accepted an understanding that I am not the one who searches, seeks-out, uncovers; I must simply accept. I learned about myself to keep my mind open and eagerly and willingly be open to new opportunities and possibilities. This has allowed me to pursue an undergraduate degree that I love, move forward into graduate level work, move to a different part of the country, take trips, fall in love, fall out of love...to fall in love again! Opportunities and possibilities have led to joy, heartache, safety, insecurity, relief, experience, an-extending family, friends, heartbreak, work and a life-time of more to come. My faith has led me to the acceptance of something more. It is time to go, live, experience and take joy in the more, wherever it may lead.
Blessings & Joy
Comments
Post a Comment