There is yet another characteristic of faith that I would like to explore. I speak of faith’s dormancy. Is there such a thing? This is what I am curious to learn about. When I consider faith’s relation to fear, I established that perhaps, fear and faith are inversely related. That is, to say, that when fear becomes diminished, faith is somewhat increased. Additionally, one may measure faith by measuring the size of fear that one may confront in equal and exact opposition. But I challenge this relationship even further.
Suppose there is still something that I am missing from the equation. Suppose I am overlooking a really important detail of faith, that I have never previously considered. So, now I play with this thought for the moment. I explore faith’s dormancy. When I speak of dormancy, I speak to the idea that faith may very well be present, but it is not yet activated. I think to myself that dormant faith is faith present in its inactivated state.
When I think of the word ‘dormancy’ the first word that comes to mind is the word ‘volcano’. Usually, most understand volcanoes to lie in dormancy for many, many years. In fact, most would hope that they remain quite dormant. But I think to myself. Though no gas or exhaust is seen blowing from through the nostrils of these mounted lands, it does not preclude any rumbling activities that may belie its more relaxed surface. In fact, one may never imagine the heightened pressures that exist below. It lets me know that not all activities are seen. This speaks to the idea of a process that is being hidden or concealed. You just would not find out what is taking place beneath. It is only until the pressures build just enough, do we see ash and smoke rising from its raging nozzle. I think for a while.
When I consider faith’s process, I grow in the understanding that faith is not something accomplished overnight. Additionally, never is there a true timeline or end date for a person, when faith achieves its maturity. If I utilize the idea that faith is actually a currency, then I would suppose that there is first a ‘seed’ investment of faith. This ‘seed’ investment starts off by first hearing and receiving God’s Word. Hearing the Word of God is the seed that is invested into a person and this is the first step of the process.
The Word must first be heard. This must mean, then, that inside the Word of God, one may find his faith. Man’s faith is found inside the Word of God. So, he must first search there if he is seeking his ‘seed’ investment of faith. Man must read the Word of God for himself and then he can come to some conclusion.
I read from the book of Luke Chapter 8:
5 “The sower went out to sow the seed. And as he sowed, some of the grain fell along the way, was trodden on and the birds of the sky ate it up.
11 Now is the point of the parable. The seed is the word of God.
So, it is highlighted that the seed, is indeed, the Word of God. So, then by hearing God’s Word, man receives his first ‘seed’ investment. This is also consistent with how faith is received. Faith is received by hearing God’s Word.
When one thinks of an actual seed, more times than not, one associates the seed state as a plant’s ‘dormant’ state. If one considers planting the seed, most would not expect anything to happen to that seed until some anticipated time. But usually, there is a latent phase.
So too, I spot faith’s latency or state of dormancy, that is, for a little while. By faith’s definition, I would imagine that faith is “faithing” the most in its most dormant state. No one expects anything to happen on the first day a seed is planted. In fact, no one expects to find any real change for some days, evens weeks, according to the type of seed one is planting. Yet, one has faith that something will become of this seed. Equally so, when one receives the Word of God, there is an initial faith that comes with the seed, since, there is already some expectation that change will occur, but in God’s perfect timing.
One needs faith in order to believe this statement, for there is absolutely nothing happening at first that can be seen with the naked eye, yet one trusts that he is being changed, even though he does not yet witness his change. One therefore reads the Word with faith and in faith. And from hearing the Word, faith is increased, though it may lie rather dormant for some time.
I have a challenging statement. This idea excites me greatly. I compose myself. When one is older and in his adult phase, he is able to read for himself the Script written by God. So, this one reads in faith. But now, I consider a child, who has been already exposed to God’s Word. There may have been many different routes and pathways where a child was able to hear God’s Word. It may have been through childhood programs. It may have been through childhood books and stories told by their teachers and elders. It may have very well fit into their culture and way of life. Through these various means, I would imagine that the Word somehow got around to reaching the ears of the child. This first act is highly important. What a child absorbs in the first seven years of life may influence him for the rest of his life.
Children are like sponges, they very readily absorb all that they see and hear. Though this information may seep into their earlier of stages of life, somewhere along the line, faith may have been found in the mix. What I find most interesting about this bit is that faith found in the Word that is spoken to a child may be lying around somewhere in the child’s mind so long after this child has grown through puberty and reached into his peak adulthood. This amazes me actually. It really does. For I see faith high in dormancy when one is not able to yet appreciate the type of faith that he carries. This is the type that I am referring to; dormant faith. That is, faith that is still in the seed phase.
I carry on. So, why exactly does this excite me? Because when one thinks of a seed that is to be planted, the fact that the seed persists despite not yet being adequately received into soil means that the seed has not lost its integrity. Even though one kept his seed for many a years, the seed has still not lost its integrity. And what better seed is there than the Word of God!
I have come to know everything we see and everything hidden, because Wisdom who designed them all, taught me. In her is a spirit that is intelligent, saintly, unique, manifold, subtle, active, concise, pure and lucid. It cannot corrupt, loves what is good and nothing can restrain it; it is beneficent, loving humankind, steadfast, dependable, calm though almighty. It sees everything and penetrates all spirits, however intelligent, subtle and pure they may be. (Wisdom 7: 21-23)
I do believe then, that though someone may or may not appear to carry Christ’s faith, I am not going to ever doubt or remove any hope that one day, that seed will burst forth into a blossoming tree. Looks can be very deceiving! Be not deceived. Once that seed has not lost its covering and integrity, there will always be a promise or a potential found in that seed that it will indeed burst forth new life. So, for the moment, maybe I may not see any mulberry trees being uprooted to meet the earth’s sea bed or I may not see mountains vociferously walking to meet new ground, but I am satisfied with the idea that one day that seed of faith first planted will burst through to produce the type of faith that certainly moves mountains, for I believe in faith’s dormancy as much as I believe in faith’s activity.
When I understand that faith can indeed, be dormant, it leaves room as a learner of faith, to not beat myself up if I see myself not exactly living life as though one has numerous amounts of faith. It gives me hope. After all, I am usually pretty fearful of everything under the sun. It gives me hope to remain in much faith. As long as I am still in this vague and uncertain space, I am still operating in the space of faith.
I cite another example to help me solidify my understanding of faith’s dormancy. I think about a childhood memory. I remember learning how to ride a bike without the training wheels. My first thought was to ride with just one training wheel on and when I built up enough courage, I would then try to ride with no training wheels on. If I re-imagine my steps, I remember that though it would have been incredible to ride a bicycle as a ‘big kid’, that is riding with no training wheels, I very much enjoyed that two-part process the whole way. Each day brought with it much joy just because I was able to ride my bicycle. Generally, I am not someone who rushes for the first place in anything. I just enjoy a good process. I enjoy being in the process. I enjoy being present in the process. This brings me the greatest joy. After all, why would I want my passion to reach towards an abrupt halt! I imagine living in the process is living in life’s dormancy. You know you expect to see some change, but it doesn’t really bother you if you do not indeed see change, for you are too caught up in the magic of the moment, moment by moment, while operating in the hidden parts of life. I would imagine then that I spend a great deal of time in faith’s dormancy. Yes! I still live in faith’s dormant phase. No. I have not that much to show off or tell anyone of how magical my world changed since stumbling upon my faith. For things I receive are given to me in measure and most time are not found in the tangibles as proof. Yet I still believe! It is for this reason that my heart grows hesitant to try to convince anyone if all they are looking for is hard proof evidence. I have none to show. Yet I still believe! On the outside, I may look like a complete failure, yet the faith in me carries me through to still believe. I brew in faith’s dormancy. I believe in life’s timeline and my life’s timing.
For me, faith looks a little bit different to what most might describe faith to be. For faith, itself has taught me to search for things that are not seen. This is my lesson and walk in this life. I have nothing tangible to prove or show, for life has propelled me think in the space of invisibility, so far removed from the material world. This is my lesson that I am sharing with you. And for the moment, I lie in the sphere of faith’s dormancy.
I would like to share just one more thought with you. I speak of dormancy, but it would not be complete, if I did not consider man’s evolution. Now I do not speak from the perspective of the individual self. I call on the term of man as the collective. How has Man changed through life’s course of history. From since the beginning of time, man has fallen from grace as sin entered into man. Man went through life’s timeline needing God’s cover. It was only until Christ, the Redeemer appeared, was man able to walk into his new self. Though man, be born blind, coming from his mother’s womb, man spends considerable time through Christ to regain the grace he once had; the grace granted by man’s Creator. So, right now, where exactly is man in life’s timeline? In man’s present state, he has been given God’s Word, which is the seed that comes from God. So, man receives God’s Word and on receiving the Word, man receives the seed. So, man at the moment, is carrying God’s seed. Man is in his ‘seed’ phase of faith. Man must therefore be in his dormant state of faith. It does not matter whether it is one thousand years or two thousand years. It doesn’t really matter how long.
A thousand years in your sight are like a day that has passed, or like a watch in the night (Psalm 90:4)
What matters is that man lives in faith, though dormant. It must be then for God alone, to carry man through his phase of dormancy and it is in God’s timeline alone, when man’s faith eventually moves from a state of dormancy to a state where activity is blooming. It is by God alone who can raise man up from his inactive state. Man therefore, waits on his Creator to wake him up to be operating in the faith that goes beyond moving mountains.
I meditate on the words taken from book of Deuteronomy Chapter 4:
27 And the Lord will scatter you among the peoples, and you will be left few in number among the nations where the Lord will drive you.
28 And there you will serve gods of wood and stone, the work of human hands, that neither see, nor hear, nor eat, nor smell.
29 But from there you will seek the Lord your God and you will find him, if you search after him with all your heart and with all your soul.
30 When you are in tribulation, and all these things come upon you in the latter days, you will return to the Lord your God and obey his voice.
31 For the Lord your God is a merciful God. He will not leave you or destroy you or forget the covenant with your fathers that he swore to them.
I consider the words taken from the book of Deuteronomy Chapter 7:
9 Know therefore that the Lord your God is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments, to a thousand generations,
Suppose there is still something that I am missing from the equation. Suppose I am overlooking a really important detail of faith, that I have never previously considered. So, now I play with this thought for the moment. I explore faith’s dormancy. When I speak of dormancy, I speak to the idea that faith may very well be present, but it is not yet activated. I think to myself that dormant faith is faith present in its inactivated state.
When I think of the word ‘dormancy’ the first word that comes to mind is the word ‘volcano’. Usually, most understand volcanoes to lie in dormancy for many, many years. In fact, most would hope that they remain quite dormant. But I think to myself. Though no gas or exhaust is seen blowing from through the nostrils of these mounted lands, it does not preclude any rumbling activities that may belie its more relaxed surface. In fact, one may never imagine the heightened pressures that exist below. It lets me know that not all activities are seen. This speaks to the idea of a process that is being hidden or concealed. You just would not find out what is taking place beneath. It is only until the pressures build just enough, do we see ash and smoke rising from its raging nozzle. I think for a while.
When I consider faith’s process, I grow in the understanding that faith is not something accomplished overnight. Additionally, never is there a true timeline or end date for a person, when faith achieves its maturity. If I utilize the idea that faith is actually a currency, then I would suppose that there is first a ‘seed’ investment of faith. This ‘seed’ investment starts off by first hearing and receiving God’s Word. Hearing the Word of God is the seed that is invested into a person and this is the first step of the process.
The Word must first be heard. This must mean, then, that inside the Word of God, one may find his faith. Man’s faith is found inside the Word of God. So, he must first search there if he is seeking his ‘seed’ investment of faith. Man must read the Word of God for himself and then he can come to some conclusion.
I read from the book of Luke Chapter 8:
5 “The sower went out to sow the seed. And as he sowed, some of the grain fell along the way, was trodden on and the birds of the sky ate it up.
11 Now is the point of the parable. The seed is the word of God.
So, it is highlighted that the seed, is indeed, the Word of God. So, then by hearing God’s Word, man receives his first ‘seed’ investment. This is also consistent with how faith is received. Faith is received by hearing God’s Word.
When one thinks of an actual seed, more times than not, one associates the seed state as a plant’s ‘dormant’ state. If one considers planting the seed, most would not expect anything to happen to that seed until some anticipated time. But usually, there is a latent phase.
So too, I spot faith’s latency or state of dormancy, that is, for a little while. By faith’s definition, I would imagine that faith is “faithing” the most in its most dormant state. No one expects anything to happen on the first day a seed is planted. In fact, no one expects to find any real change for some days, evens weeks, according to the type of seed one is planting. Yet, one has faith that something will become of this seed. Equally so, when one receives the Word of God, there is an initial faith that comes with the seed, since, there is already some expectation that change will occur, but in God’s perfect timing.
One needs faith in order to believe this statement, for there is absolutely nothing happening at first that can be seen with the naked eye, yet one trusts that he is being changed, even though he does not yet witness his change. One therefore reads the Word with faith and in faith. And from hearing the Word, faith is increased, though it may lie rather dormant for some time.
I have a challenging statement. This idea excites me greatly. I compose myself. When one is older and in his adult phase, he is able to read for himself the Script written by God. So, this one reads in faith. But now, I consider a child, who has been already exposed to God’s Word. There may have been many different routes and pathways where a child was able to hear God’s Word. It may have been through childhood programs. It may have been through childhood books and stories told by their teachers and elders. It may have very well fit into their culture and way of life. Through these various means, I would imagine that the Word somehow got around to reaching the ears of the child. This first act is highly important. What a child absorbs in the first seven years of life may influence him for the rest of his life.
Children are like sponges, they very readily absorb all that they see and hear. Though this information may seep into their earlier of stages of life, somewhere along the line, faith may have been found in the mix. What I find most interesting about this bit is that faith found in the Word that is spoken to a child may be lying around somewhere in the child’s mind so long after this child has grown through puberty and reached into his peak adulthood. This amazes me actually. It really does. For I see faith high in dormancy when one is not able to yet appreciate the type of faith that he carries. This is the type that I am referring to; dormant faith. That is, faith that is still in the seed phase.
I carry on. So, why exactly does this excite me? Because when one thinks of a seed that is to be planted, the fact that the seed persists despite not yet being adequately received into soil means that the seed has not lost its integrity. Even though one kept his seed for many a years, the seed has still not lost its integrity. And what better seed is there than the Word of God!
I have come to know everything we see and everything hidden, because Wisdom who designed them all, taught me. In her is a spirit that is intelligent, saintly, unique, manifold, subtle, active, concise, pure and lucid. It cannot corrupt, loves what is good and nothing can restrain it; it is beneficent, loving humankind, steadfast, dependable, calm though almighty. It sees everything and penetrates all spirits, however intelligent, subtle and pure they may be. (Wisdom 7: 21-23)
I do believe then, that though someone may or may not appear to carry Christ’s faith, I am not going to ever doubt or remove any hope that one day, that seed will burst forth into a blossoming tree. Looks can be very deceiving! Be not deceived. Once that seed has not lost its covering and integrity, there will always be a promise or a potential found in that seed that it will indeed burst forth new life. So, for the moment, maybe I may not see any mulberry trees being uprooted to meet the earth’s sea bed or I may not see mountains vociferously walking to meet new ground, but I am satisfied with the idea that one day that seed of faith first planted will burst through to produce the type of faith that certainly moves mountains, for I believe in faith’s dormancy as much as I believe in faith’s activity.
When I understand that faith can indeed, be dormant, it leaves room as a learner of faith, to not beat myself up if I see myself not exactly living life as though one has numerous amounts of faith. It gives me hope. After all, I am usually pretty fearful of everything under the sun. It gives me hope to remain in much faith. As long as I am still in this vague and uncertain space, I am still operating in the space of faith.
I cite another example to help me solidify my understanding of faith’s dormancy. I think about a childhood memory. I remember learning how to ride a bike without the training wheels. My first thought was to ride with just one training wheel on and when I built up enough courage, I would then try to ride with no training wheels on. If I re-imagine my steps, I remember that though it would have been incredible to ride a bicycle as a ‘big kid’, that is riding with no training wheels, I very much enjoyed that two-part process the whole way. Each day brought with it much joy just because I was able to ride my bicycle. Generally, I am not someone who rushes for the first place in anything. I just enjoy a good process. I enjoy being in the process. I enjoy being present in the process. This brings me the greatest joy. After all, why would I want my passion to reach towards an abrupt halt! I imagine living in the process is living in life’s dormancy. You know you expect to see some change, but it doesn’t really bother you if you do not indeed see change, for you are too caught up in the magic of the moment, moment by moment, while operating in the hidden parts of life. I would imagine then that I spend a great deal of time in faith’s dormancy. Yes! I still live in faith’s dormant phase. No. I have not that much to show off or tell anyone of how magical my world changed since stumbling upon my faith. For things I receive are given to me in measure and most time are not found in the tangibles as proof. Yet I still believe! It is for this reason that my heart grows hesitant to try to convince anyone if all they are looking for is hard proof evidence. I have none to show. Yet I still believe! On the outside, I may look like a complete failure, yet the faith in me carries me through to still believe. I brew in faith’s dormancy. I believe in life’s timeline and my life’s timing.
For me, faith looks a little bit different to what most might describe faith to be. For faith, itself has taught me to search for things that are not seen. This is my lesson and walk in this life. I have nothing tangible to prove or show, for life has propelled me think in the space of invisibility, so far removed from the material world. This is my lesson that I am sharing with you. And for the moment, I lie in the sphere of faith’s dormancy.
I would like to share just one more thought with you. I speak of dormancy, but it would not be complete, if I did not consider man’s evolution. Now I do not speak from the perspective of the individual self. I call on the term of man as the collective. How has Man changed through life’s course of history. From since the beginning of time, man has fallen from grace as sin entered into man. Man went through life’s timeline needing God’s cover. It was only until Christ, the Redeemer appeared, was man able to walk into his new self. Though man, be born blind, coming from his mother’s womb, man spends considerable time through Christ to regain the grace he once had; the grace granted by man’s Creator. So, right now, where exactly is man in life’s timeline? In man’s present state, he has been given God’s Word, which is the seed that comes from God. So, man receives God’s Word and on receiving the Word, man receives the seed. So, man at the moment, is carrying God’s seed. Man is in his ‘seed’ phase of faith. Man must therefore be in his dormant state of faith. It does not matter whether it is one thousand years or two thousand years. It doesn’t really matter how long.
A thousand years in your sight are like a day that has passed, or like a watch in the night (Psalm 90:4)
What matters is that man lives in faith, though dormant. It must be then for God alone, to carry man through his phase of dormancy and it is in God’s timeline alone, when man’s faith eventually moves from a state of dormancy to a state where activity is blooming. It is by God alone who can raise man up from his inactive state. Man therefore, waits on his Creator to wake him up to be operating in the faith that goes beyond moving mountains.
I meditate on the words taken from book of Deuteronomy Chapter 4:
27 And the Lord will scatter you among the peoples, and you will be left few in number among the nations where the Lord will drive you.
28 And there you will serve gods of wood and stone, the work of human hands, that neither see, nor hear, nor eat, nor smell.
29 But from there you will seek the Lord your God and you will find him, if you search after him with all your heart and with all your soul.
30 When you are in tribulation, and all these things come upon you in the latter days, you will return to the Lord your God and obey his voice.
31 For the Lord your God is a merciful God. He will not leave you or destroy you or forget the covenant with your fathers that he swore to them.
I consider the words taken from the book of Deuteronomy Chapter 7:
9 Know therefore that the Lord your God is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments, to a thousand generations,
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