Have you ever thought about what the hallmarks of civilization - honor, love, hatred, balance, and people's interaction - might be? We all use faith. Faith is the belief and assurance that what we believe to be true will turn out to be true. Learning to ensure togetherness and sharing with others enables anyone, any sane individual, to live a purposeful life. This trait is really the “main” foundation of accepting family, tribe, community, city, and so on to infinity. Whether you judge yourself to be a deeply spiritual person or not, you must have faith to live life, to have fun, to work, and to go to school. Learning to confirm and share your faith with others will help you live a life of faith.
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Part 1 of 3: Confirming Your Faith
Step 1. "Improve instinct"
Do what you love, enjoy what you do, love what you feel or wish you knew. Get subtle and elegant or complex thoughts in your mind, then challenge people on your mission, live positively, on what you hope to succeed (encouraging yourself). Do better in comparisons, overcoming the fear [or hate] of things being bigger than you could hope for, based on the situation at the time.
- Do a parachute jump based on faith in a main human, that one special person who prepares your parachute.
- Drive at high speed with complete faith (in some hope): drivers obey the rules, maintain skill and vigilance, and that everyone stays on track to stay alive.
- Eat with faith in a restaurant that trusts (or relies) on its chef not to kill you, with faith that the chef keeps the food clean, fresh, and safe.
- Earn awards at least as first-rate (or as "only") at a level higher than this.
- Win a cause, clap your hands, keep the "rhythm" -- obey the rules, respect the jury's decision.
- Agree to compete or cooperate, seek peace or fight and strive together to have a friendly or hateful home, school, team, workplace, follow a leader, …
Step 2. Realize that faith in a "possible" now or predictable outcome, beyond the usual routine and predictable attitude, is a valuable thing that a champion in large numbers has
A champion can be successful with strong faith and belief in greater possibilities, through his belief and action in imagining and following a goal, believing and acting more in certain areas than most people do. Accept a "championship caliber," accepting your free gift of a larger vision of something more, permanent, and perhaps from a cause, or motive. It goes beyond just different boundaries in actualizing hope. This is within verifiable area, but it is beyond the conceptual boundaries seen in daily routines. It is a feeling deep inside that gives people a feeling of something greater than mechanical logic. Let this blessing of happy fortune take root, as a seed and let the roots of this gift motivate you.
- If you don't have faith (religiously), put your faith in your chances: that with cooperation, goodwill, and charity, one can transcend hatred and oppression in the world. Or, develop a faith in art, literature, music, and creative expression that can elevate you to higher and better states of mind. Put your faith in the ability of empirical, scientific, or philosophical learning to answer meaningful questions you have about the existence of life, and all that else. Where do we come from? What does it mean to be alive? Seek the answers, having faith that you will find them.
- If you are a very spiritual or religious person, put your faith in a higher power and dedicate your life to worshiping/serving the God you believe in. Faith comes from listening, and listening comes from teaching. How can you know the truth? Use your faith in divine destiny and teachings to explain the world, and the Spirit to guide and protect you. Find a community of people of the same faith who share your passion for life, truth, hope, the way and love.
Step 3. Have faith based on knowledge through study
Whatever your belief system and your faith, it is important to believe in and develop that faith as a lifelong learning mission. Commit to building your faith into knowledge based belief systems. Don't be an ignorant believer, because "you will know the truth and the truth will set you free" declares the infinite value of knowledge!
- If you have a religious faith, commit to studying the core texts of your belief system. Being a Christmas-and-Easter Christian and occasionally listening to a sermon on the radio are not enough to live a life of faith. Read religious texts (such as the Bible or the Koran) and study the sources of your religion.
- If you have faith in science, or any other non-religious belief system, practice healthy questioning (skepticism) and keep an open mind to alternative possibilities. A science-based mind can become as closed off as any other mind, if you are not receptive to the right of others to live according to beliefs you might call unfounded.
Step 4. Have faith to make progress
Believe in your ability to achieve what you want or need, to go beyond your current state and become the best version of yourself. Be as independent as possible, as a capable person, supporting yourself in a world you can't. Use your faith to make connections, give yourself the best chance of success and faith in something. Make targets. Create and, if necessary, improve yourself by achieving your goals.
- Having faith in a higher power does not free or detach you from the interests of the here and now. You are not a leaf flying in the wind of your beliefs, saying "God will provide" when you are out of work, and not trying to get a job. Use your faith to support yourself, but never make it an excuse to leave your responsibilities.
- Having faith in the advancement of people and in discovering the basic good of humanity means that you have to contribute. You can't give just by watching sad documentation and "feeling anxious" about the situation in third world countries. Do something about it in the here and now.
Step 5. Show your faith in your family and loved ones
If you can't build trust within your family, then who can you trust? Surround yourself with people you can trust, people you can lean on in times of trouble -- and be the person others can rely on. A community of believers is important, but a home of people who can depend on each other is absolutely essential to creating and sharing "together".
If you feel like a scapegoat in your family, or come from an unsupportive household, try to fix that -- or if you can't, find a community of faith elsewhere. Consider spending more time at church, practicing and sharing your beliefs with others, or finding a secular community to do missions with
Step 6. Use doubt to reconfirm your faith
There is no believer without a doubt. When Einstein first observed quantum interrelation-the observation that some particles were so closely linked that they would behave in identical patterns, no matter how far apart they were-he called it "the scary action at a distance," and it shook his faith in God, science., and his way of understanding the world. But the power of the paradox ultimately strengthened his belief in both. What we can observe may frighten us, but we are still challenged by our world, and our perception of reality, whether we want it or not.
Part 2 of 3: Sharing Faith
Step 1. Find a community of like-minded believers
Faith is much easier to use in groups of believers which can help you build your beliefs into a strong, fail-safe system. As steel sharpens steel, one person sharpens another. Find a local "faith-based" organization in your area, whether it's a church, club, or other type of social group. Meet people with whom you can practice your faith.
If you're having trouble finding a suitable community in your area, consider reaching out to people on the internet in your area of trust. Faith-based blogs, message boards, YouTube groups, and other useful online communities are numerous and as effective as forming a fraternity. You should never have to feel alone
Step 2. Make your home a faith-based home
If you have children, deciding how you will raise them in faith can be a challenging idea. Will you raise them the way you were raised? Will you raise them with the same beliefs you hold, or will you let them mold their own mentality in various forms? Creating an environment in which faith can grow is an important part of any home of faith. How you choose to do so will be entirely up to you, and your own belief system, but it is very important to make faith (not an image of a faithless reality) a part of your reality and your family's life.
- If you are religious, you can take your children to church and raise them in your faith. Even if you are not very religious, however, allowing, non-judgmentally, your children to experience the world of community of faith can be a powerful and moving experience for you and your children. Let them see and appreciate how different people choose to express their faith and practice forms of worship.
- If you are not religious, it is important to share your beliefs with your children from an early age, but not to impose them on them. Let your children experience different beliefs, faiths, and ways of interpreting the world. Let them find their own expression of faith.
- As your children grow up, try to respect their developing belief system and their faith in something. It may be a different faith than yours, and even quite the opposite, if you let it. If you were a true atheist, what would you do, if your child really wanted to join the Catholic church? If you are someone who has a strong faith in religion, what would you do if your child rejected your area of belief/faith or how it was expressed?
Step 3. Encourage faith friendships
Don't get confused (or struggle) alone. Form strong bonds and long-term relationships with people who share your mission/faith. Faith-based friendships and relationships will help you to grow together in your faith, learn and support each other by agreement. If you have doubts, spending time with friends who have established similar beliefs can help you turn those doubts into solid decisions (life of faith).
Faith-based friendships don't have to revolve around just one thing. You don't have to be locked into ongoing scientific or divine conversations with your friends, and you don't have to constantly argue with other religious or scientific minds. Every now and then, just go fishing
Step 4. Be generous
Open the vault of your faith for others to take -- or add -- freely. Faith works in mysterious ways in motivating events and people. You won't know unless you think and discuss about (and engage in) things. While faith-centeredness can make some people generous and kind, it can also make others arrogant, limiting clear-thinking discussion, acting and acting patronizing. If you believe that you have found a key to a true path to understanding the world, it can be difficult to just sit back and share thoughts/beliefs with people who have other ways of gaining faith. Do your best to share your concept of faith and represent the good news (its teachings) accurately, while respecting others' free speech and peaceful gatherings.
- Try to spend quality time with people who trust and live life in very different ways from yours. Join other types of organizations–local softball teams, bowling leagues, playing groups (cards/boards/other games), local organizations–and build (enhance) good relationships with people who may have beliefs and attitudes that differ from yours.
- Memorizing inspirational quotes about faith and speaking words of wisdom may sound good every now and then, but it also puts your faith in a limited "canned food diet." Faith is bigger than impressive quotes, bigger than small bites. There are no shortcuts to developing deep faith in what you believe in and living a life of faith. Be generous and humble with your faith, but don't flaunt it with pride, boast, and belittle others. Humble yourself, obediently, but be firm and determined.
Step 5. Consider missionary or volunteer work
Whatever your beliefs, it's important to use your faith to give, both to your own community and to others in need.
- In religious communities, missionary trips are often part of youth groups and a large part of the church's contribution to community service and organization. During mission trips, congregational groups spread teachings and usually undertake some kind of community building activity, such as volunteering to become teachers, build houses or churches, or do other important things.
- Secular nonprofits such as the Peace Corps, Red Cross, and Doctors Without Borders usually do not discriminate and focus primarily on the humanitarian side of volunteer work, and not on the “spreading of teachings.” If your primary goal is to help, volunteering your time for a private nonprofit organization can be a prime way to do so.
Part 3 of 3: Finding Faith by Gathering Together
Step 1. Consider studying different faith and belief systems, if you wish
If you're struggling with changing (or seeking) faith in something, or want to name and use a faith you feel, but have a hard time voicing -- it can be stimulating and encouraging to join a group or congregation in that arena. Acknowledging a higher power in organized situations offers many people satisfaction, relief, and strength. If you think you may be one of them, but were not raised with a religious faith, take the time to study different religious groups and faiths, study their belief systems, and find the ones that work best for you using your power of choice.
If you were raised in the church way, but feel dissatisfied, you may be experiencing a crisis of faith. Do you use the doubts or questions you are experiencing to rekindle (with sparks spark) your beliefs? Or to find faith elsewhere? Everyone will need to answer this question for himself or herself, but studying the other options is a clever way to answer the question. If you are not satisfied with one congregation, try another. If your religion gives you more questions and conceptual distractions than answers, start reading about your own or other beliefs. Trust that you will find (receive) the right answer
Step 2. Study Buddhism
Buddha has faith in the Eight Right Paths, which is a method of living in simplicity as a way to end human suffering by eliminating dependence on desires. Faith in Buddhism comes from the Pali word saddhā, which often refers to faith. Saddhā is often described as "faith and determination to achieve goals and find happiness". Learn more about Buddhism in the following articles:
- Become a Buddha
- Praying Buddha Prayers
- Practicing Tibetan Buddhism
Step 3. Study Christianity
Christians believe in one God, who created heaven and earth, and who is present on earth as Jesus Christ, who died for the sins of mankind. Christians believe that obeying God's will and putting faith in Christ is an important part of saving your immortal soul from hell. Christ told a parable about faith: "And the seeds that fall on fertile soil are like those who hear the news and understand it. They bear much fruit, some a hundred, some sixty, and some thirty times as much." (Matthew 13:23) Learn more about Christianity in the following articles:
- Accept Christ as your Saviour
- Understanding the Prophecy of the Messiah
- Praying Effectively (Christianity)
- Confessing Sins Properly in the Catholic Church
Step 4. Learn Islam
Muslims believe that there is only one true God, named Allah, and that Muhammad is His prophet. Faith in Islam is called faith which includes submitting to Allah, obeying, believing, proclaiming, and doing things according to Allah's will. Muslims perform daily affirmations and prayers to renew this belief. Read the articles below to learn more about Islam:
- Learn about Islam
- Finding Qibla to Pray
- Stop Sin
Step 5. Study Judaism
Jews believed in God in the Old Testament, called the Torah, where they recognized the value of faith and belief as seen in Abraham. Abraham believed messages from God that seemed impossible, but obeyed them without questioning them. This unwavering belief and faith in God is at the heart of Judaism. Learn more about Judaism in the following articles:
- Creating Productive Christian and Jewish Dialogue
- Enter Judaism
- Celebrating Easter
Step 6. Study the universalist faith
Unitarian Universalism has no written rules that you must obey. Many Unitarian Universalists do not believe in God, while many others do. But because UU is a very accepting religion, they don't judge you on other beliefs. Many Unitarian Universalists celebrate both Christmas and Hanukkah, while others do not, so you can study religion in an accepting and tolerant environment.
- Practicing Unitarian Universalism
- Praying Unitarian Universalist Prayers
Tips
- When a person is sad, angry, or afraid it may be the best time to teach him or her about faith in God's continued love and presence. For example, during a storm on a lake on a boat, or with those who threaten to harm the guilty/suspected neighbor.
- Use teaching moments such as when people like children experience unusual situations, when they are best prepared to learn and develop. When events happen to them with feelings of fear, greed, anger, joy, amazement, or wonder, you can show them in faith to see events and God at work and how they learn in those gripping situations.
- Use happy and joyful events as teaching moments. People learn more when they enjoy it going on. Make the study of faith fun! Don't avoid or ignore the idea. You don't like anything, by absorbing anger and hatred. Who has ever accused great teachers of being too loud or boring.
- Don't look for tests that produce absolute evidence of your beliefs. Such evidence is neither likely nor significant. God always leaves room for you to exercise your faith, but we are expected to test things that can indeed be tested, if we can, and the results should determine the definition of some of our ideas and our decisions based on knowledge.
- Whatever you pray for in the name of the Lord, believe that you will receive it and it will be yours.
- Some events and ideas we forget almost instantly and some we remember for the rest of our lives because they are surprising and very real. To strengthen faith and increase the power of knowledge and faith, we can meditate on truth and faith. Review, discuss, teach, and use the knowledge you can, time and time again, all the time.
- Faith is not constant, but it can be expanded or diminished and prompts people to learn more as faith grows or withers and falls. So we can grow in faith and grace and be open, or we can sit back, settle down, and stay put, rotting, a little warm…
- Don't fail to admire faith with your family and friends at every sunrise and sunset, when you visit a zoo, and as you realize the complex wonders of life such as in plants or the human body.
- In fact, consider if water is turned into wine at a wedding feast as Christ did. And what if you found the cash to pay taxes in the mouth of a fish and took it: happy, joyful, unforgettable (as His disciples did)! So make faith learning fun with parables.
