I’ve always loved the Bible verse that talks about faith, hope and love. It’s familiar and I think it grounds a lot of people in life. We see the words all over, separate and together. I wrote a series called Richness in Faith. The books came out in the order of love, hope, then faith. But I’m doing a 3 part series here on faith, hope then love. So we’ll tackle them that way. Last to first.
Faith.
It’s not tangible, yet we know it. It overwhelms us at times, yet seems to vanish at others. It’s an anchor for our trust and belief in our Savior.
My book, Rich in Faith, deals with the hero, Court Treyhune, who has lost faith because of a circumstance. I think, as readers, we can relate. He buries himself in work, trusts his twins to a nanny, and my heroine, Shelby Madison, ends up being his nanny. So the journey begins.
Shelby Madison is crushed when her CEO fiance breaks off their engagement. She quickly escapes to south Florida to become a nanny to widower, Court Treyhune’s, twin daughters. Settling into a luxurious life as the help wasn’t in Shelby’s plans, but she soon finds the twins aren’t the only ones in need of care. Shelby thought her wounded heart had issues, but Court guards his heart so tightly, if something doesn’t give soon, the twins bay never know the love of their father. Can Court regain his faith in time to show Shelby how rich her life can really be?
We all want to avoid hurt when possible. But hurting is a part of life. When we walk in the faith we have in God, we are walking into the unknown at times. We aren’t promised a life without hurt, but we are promised a Savior we can turn to for comfort and peace. Knowing that is walking in faith. It’s not always easy.
That’s the fun part abut being a writer. We can twist and turn with our characters, most of the time knowing what the outcome will be. Not so much in real life, right? But we continue. We move forward.
As a reader, I love the journey reading stories takes me. I love reading about the faith of characters, or seeing them falter, then prevail. Reading is such an important part of my life. I treasure it and the joy it brings me. The journeys are endless. We’re almost starting a journey of faith every time we pick up a story!
How do you find faith working in your life? Overwhelming? Vanishing? Somewhere in between? I’d love to hear your stories and will randomly choose from the commenters one winner to receive a copy of my book, Rich in Faith.
USA Today featured author Lindi Peterson lives in north Georgia, in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains, with her husband and a lively array of cats, dogs and birds. She loves sharing life with her family and friends. Her passion for reading led her to writing, and then God spoke words of love into her heart and changed her life forever.
I just finished My Strobon Heart by Becky Wade and was reminded that I Ned to trust God in every aspect of my life.
During this mourning season of my life, my faith is what is getting me through! I can see God working things out in ways I hadn’t even dreamed of. I knew He would take care of me, and now I can see the ways that He is. Before this season, I knew He would do it, now I’m seeing the evidence of Him doing it, and that is helping me to have even more faith.
For me faith is a feeling and when I have that feeling I am rock solid in following it and have always been successful then. Some people put it down to luck, but we know differently :)
Becky Wade—such a good author to read! Thank you for sharing. And yes, trusting God is important in all areas.
Trudy—Some seasons are just one day at a time seasons. Faith daily, seeing the faithfulness of God. What an amazing testimony!
God shows me He’s working in my life and providing in ways that only He can. As I pause and look at different times in my life, I can clearly see that the outcome that could only have been by His choice and and His intervention. The opportunity to return to graduate school to finish my doctorate degree; saving my life; years later saving my sister’s life.
Dianne—Yes, there are webs and flows for sure. I love when assurance is at the forefront and guiding us. And even if things don’t turn out the way we want, the way we handle it is showing faith to so many.
Suzan, In looking back on God’s faithfulness, we’re propelled forward with that same faithfulness we’ve seen working. He truly is our living hope!!!
Can’t really imagine my life without it!
“I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love.”
Ephesians 3:16-17
Okay, I am a language geek. Let me just start there. Faith, hope and love are some of the slipperiest words in the English language, aren’t they? Yet, as believers, we see their true meaning in the way God shows His character to us. We get to see the real deal.
In the original language of the New Testament, the same word is used for both faith and trust. To trust is to act on the basis of a promise. Sometimes that promise is explicit: Jesus is always with us, He is coming again, heaven awaits us when this life is over. Sometimes the promise is implicit. We don’t get to know the details but we know that because He is with us, the outcome is in His hands and He is for us.
Faith, hope and love. We can experience them as both a feeling and a choice. The feeling is that wonderful sense of confidence in God that wraps us up like a warm comforter on a cold winter night. The choice is when we act even though the feeling is not there, knowing that He is trustworthy. His promises are sure even when my weakness seems to overwhelm me.
What a precious reminder, Lindi. Thank you!
Natalya, Ah!! Thanks for sharing scripture!!!
Lincoln—Thanks for the language lesson–I love it.:) I have a Greek translation on my phone and I often go it it. The English language sometimes seems to lack some of what the Greek language portrays. The translators do an amazing job. I love how you say we can experience them as a feeling or a choice. Nice introspect. :)
I have always believed and always will believe, that without faith, there is nothing. I have a lot of faith in my God. Faith keeps me going .
During this season of life, God has shown me that I am not in control but that He is. Although life is crazy, I can rest in His guidance and care
Faith is an area I struggle with honestly! Especially with the hard stuff in life or the unknowns. I’m such a planner, so when unexpected things come up in life, it can really throw me for a loop. I’m still learning to have faith that God has it all in His hands, though I have done better over the years. He’s gotten me this far, so I can trust Him to get me through whatever life has in store. The one question I have to remember to ask in uncertain times is “what lesson are you trying to teach me (God)”? That helps put it in perspective for me. Not easy by a LONG shot though :-)
Your book sounds amazing! I love learning & growing through characters in a story…it helps me with my own faith walk.
Faith is tricky. I have concrete certain faith that God is who he says he is and that he loves me as he says he does. However, I often struggle with having faith and believing he will do certain things in my life that I am praying for.
I am almost like the man in the Bible who told Jesus – “I believe. Help my unbelief.”
I would say it ranges back and forth. There are moments that I struggle with faith. It has been a rough year. My stepmom passed away in March 2000. My Dad had to move out of the house they lived in by June. I was able to find an apartment for him six blocks from me. He battled in court with her children. It was very messy and hurtful. It is finally over. He is finally being left alone. He is working through the grief process. In August, my Mom who we lived with fell. She hit her head on the table. She had two staples in the back of her head as well as a six to eight week stay in a rehab center. Wednesday before Thanksgiving, she started having severe pain. She was taken by ambulance to the hospital. She had many large kidney stones. She has battled infections since November. She has had two procedures. She has been in ICU three times. We found out about a month ago that she will not be able to return home. She requires 24 hour care. I am working on getting her on Medicaid because the insurance will not continue to pay for her stay. I have battled with why as well as how hard this season of my life has become. I know that God is there in the good times as well as carrying me in the bad times.
Faith and prayer are what I rely on in good times and bad.
Faith is what keeps myself & family going throughout the days. We just pray it’ll get better.
Faith is one of the best things in my life. Faith also needs to grow, so every day we must pray if it continues to grow. Thank you for posting this!
This is why I really like Christian Fiction, I don’t just read a book I get a deeper story out of it that often mirrors my own life or experiences. CF is encouraging and thought provoking and I think its really important to have stories that help us in our faith, to remember hard times won’t last forever.