Faith in Time?

Faith: belief that does not rest on logical proof or material evidence (dictionary.com)
Faith: the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen (Book of Hebrews in the Bible)

What is this "faith" that is both casually tossed about by some and seriously held by others? Faith in what or in whom? Most American's don't need faith. We're doing fine without it, since we are mostly concerned about what we possess and how we look. We have what we want (or can purchase what we want) and we look how we want to look (or we can purchase the way we want to look).

It seems the only thing we can't purchase is time. This we don't have enough of, and we prove it every day by purchasing things that save us time, but we still don't have enough of it, so we keep searching for time saving devices and time saving methods and life extending treatments.

Interestingly, there is probably not another society that has ever existed that had more time to do whatever it wants. Most of our basic needs can be easily met with very little of our personal effort. Our food, clothing and shelter is made by someone else. We have the means to purchase it through working, but we don't have to kill our food or grow our food or harvest our food ourselves; we don't have to use a loom to weave our clothes, or kill animals to have skins to make shoes or coats ourselves; we don't have to cut down trees and saw them or plumb our houses ourselves; we don't have to fetch water or dig latrines ourselves. Machines make our food, wash and dry our clothes, get us to where we need to go quickly, process our waste, compute our bills, and even help us create our blogs (before anyone begins looking for me to upbraid me for my insensitivity to those who work in the home, I'm comparing our society to past societies -- I know taking care of a family's basic needs is hard work and time consuming, but not like it was even 50 years ago).

Since we can only desire what we do not have and the only thing most Americans don't have is time, we insatiably desire time. We stretch our time as far as possible through the use of machines, those machines that save us time and those machines that keep us alive so that we can have more time. We extend our time (lives) at great (all?) cost. What makes time so important? Can you have faith in time itself? Why is time so important that we would spend treasure and talent for it? Is it because if we don't have faith, time is all there is?

Good Pain

Choices come and choices go, but the consequences of the choices I make keep on giving. Right choices, whenever those are accomplished, often provide positive consequences, so I make that same choice each time the situation is presented, like ordering a chocolate almond shake at Braums.

Sometimes, right choices result in negative consequences, like choosing to stand up to a bully and finding yourself with a bloody nose, a few missing teeth and a damaged ego. Of course, some would say those aren't negative consequences at all, but rather, positive consequences since the right thing was done and a lesson was learned (don't stand up to bullies? standing up to bullies is painful? standing up to bullies result in positive, painful consequences? -- positive painful -- an oxymoron?).

I have found that most people equate pain with "bad." To them, there is no such thing as good pain. The closest thing to good pain, it seems, is pain that helps us be vain, as in, "I am in pain from working out, but now I can wear those pants and look better." That's physical pain. Emotional pain -- BAD!

If my choices create pain in me or in others, that's BAD! Well, I think there is such a thing as good pain, useful pain. What is that? Probably pain that helps me grow up. And somewhat like the song says -- "breaking up is hard to do," -- growing up is hard to do, too. It takes good pain. And good pain comes from choices. How often do I choose to make choices that I know will result in "good pain?"

Creator of ?

God the Creator, by speaking, made heaven and earth. God the Creator, by speaking, made man in his image. God, by speaking, created everything ex nihilo (out of nothing). From nothing, God created matter; from chaos God created order; from dust God created man.

Like God, we also are creators. Like God, we create by speaking. While no person I know can create matter by speaking, like God, we use words to create ex nihilo (out of nothing). By speaking evil, I can create havoc. By speaking kindness, I can create positive feelings in myself and others. Ex nihilo, I can choose words of faith rather than words of despair, expressions of love over hate, even action over apathy. Yes, I know God created me, and so, without God I cannot speak or act; yet, God allows me to create as he created, through spoken words; and God gives me choice to move and think and say and be whatever I choose. God has even made it known what kind of life (Word) is most creative -- one of service and sacrifice and suffering.

What are my words creating? What are your words creating? What might our conversation create?