Finding Faith

"Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on a rock." - Matthew 7:24


"Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves.  You will know them by their fruits.  Are grapes gathered from thorns or figs from thistles?  So, every sound tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears evil fruit." - Matthew 7:15




If faith was easy to keep Jesus would not have needed to save us from sin.   If faith was easy to have we would not need the church or the bible.  We would be like Adam, living in a state of sanctifying grace in the Garden of Eden.  Giving Adam free will, God was betrayed by man and we lost God's grace.  Jesus came and knew the hearts of men and fashioned parables.  

Saying I believe in God and actually believing in him gets the better of me all the time.  I hate to admit it, but I loved the attention.  Attention I was getting while not following the commandments nor cracking open a bible.  The minute I wasn't around my friends from church, I would fall into the same habits.  I was a hypocrite; just like the scribes who loved to pray in public and sit at the best seats and eat the best food.

Call it an epitome, but I was inclined to visit a website my friend had linked through Facebook.  The site had people who shared how God had saved them.  I felt the holy spirit for the first time in a while and immediately contacted a church about RCIA.  I also had an urge to understand God.  I think the biggest problem with faith is we just don't know what/who God is and what he wants for us.

I read a book called "The Faith Explained" (keep in mind I will be quoting from this book many times) and it explained our creation in a very easy way.  God created us in his image; to glorify himself.  Imagine yourself as an artist.  You have a picture in your head and you decide to paint it.  You pour your heart and feelings into the painting and ta-da! It is finished!  Don't you feel proud and full of joy in your work?  God loves his creations and he wants good things for them.

My non-catholic friends always think of God as this restricting parent.  I admit, I am guilty of this too.  The thing I realized and love to think about is how much God loves us and wants us to see him in heaven.  Your parents won't stop you from sticking your hand in a blender if they didn't think it was dangerous.  He loves us and wants to guide our lives.

Another problem is all of the outside influences.  For all the friends I have that love and believe, I have 10 more that do not.  This is the biggest factor for turning from Christ if there is no foundation in faith.  That foundation is a complete and utter acceptance of our weakness and God's love for us.  Give yourself up and understand what the ultimate goal is; get to heaven.  No matter how much fun it is to laugh about someone or  how enjoyable it is to do what we want, know that God is still waiting and smiling.  He isn't scorning nor is he punishing.  That understanding has been my rock even though I have not finished building my house.

Lately I have been feeling guilty about how open I was with my faith.  Am I falling into the same habit?  I realize now that it isn't true.  It is okay to surround yourself with Christ. There is nothing wrong with saying "I love you Jesus" to the entire world.  Jesus says we are known by our fruits.  Try to find your relationship with him and surround yourself in his love.  Keeping God in my mind, heart, and lips has been my foundation up until now.  

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Matthew 7:15
Matthew 7:24