To each individual the manifestation of the Spirit is given for some benefit.
To one is given through the Spirit the expression of wisdom; to another the expression of knowledge according to the same Spirit;
to another faith by the same Spirit…..1Cor.12:7-10
Lately, I have been thinking about the gift of faith. Throughout my life I have met several people that have a strong gift of faith. I have also met those people that struggle a great deal with their faith; some have lost their faith and some have never had the gift of faith to begin with.
My grandpa was one of those people that lost his faith. Whether or not his faith was ever strong to begin with, I will never know.
Grandpa was in WWII, in fact, he was one of the original soldiers on Iwo Jima to help raise the American flag. He told me that his experiences in the war lead him to believe that God could not possibly exist because if he did he would not have allowed such inhuman tragedy to take place. I have heard comments like his before from other people, you probably have too.
An interesting fact about grandpa’s loss of faith however, was that he spent the rest of his life trying to find someone that would convince him that God did exist and that faith was real. Hard as our family tried, he claimed that we still hadn’t proven it to him, and he struggled with this until his dying day.
The family spent much time in intercessory prayer for grandpa and I strongly believe that he is now resting in the arms of Divine Mercy, that he is finally at peace.
I am very grateful to have been blessed with the gift of faith. It is something that I have always had since childhood. And, though I loved playing outside and being with friends the same as the other children did, I was just as content to read my favorite bible stories like “Joseph and the Coat of Many Colors” or “Moses in the Land of Egypt” or to watch movies like “Our Lady of Fatima” and the “Robe”. These were always more than just stories or entertainment for me: they were examples of hope and faith in a loving God that never would abandon His people.
With each passing year, even in the midst of trial, I feel my faith grow stronger. I see the hand of the Almighty constantly reaching out to me, wanting to draw me closer. His love is ever present and I find myself wanting to spend more and more time with Him.
Thank you Lord for the gift of faith which you have so generously blessed me with, may it always be used for your glory…. In Jesus Name..
10 comments:
What JOY I received by reading this beautiful post. Yes, yes, FAITH is a gift. I spent a lot of my young years without any faith, or religion for that matter. I pray every day for forgiveness. Perhaps God has already forgiven me, but I have not forgiven myself? I speak of this so often ...
I am so blessed that you found me and became a Sister in Christ.
I came upon an explanation about bad things happening and why God "allows" it .. I've got to see if i can find it again, and then I will share it with you.
With much love, I am,
In Christ,
Abbey ♥
The Good Lord knows us more than we know ourselves. He knows that some of us struggle with our Faith ... no matter how much we try. Yet He loves us all the same.
God bless.
You are so blessed for realizing what a wonderful gift you have from the Lord. And you are doing a great thing with your blog in helping others grow/keep their faith.
God Bless you!
DG, have you read "The Holy Longing" by Ronald Rolheiser? He speaks of people who have fallen away from the church still having a connection through family or friends whose faith is strong. As long as he had you in his life and you were leading the best life you could and praying for him, he was touching the hem of Christ through you. I find that to be very comforting.
What a beautiful post and I will pray for your grandfather. To see such horror during those battles. May God show you mercy and bring your family peace. Gob bless you.
Thank you Abbey, Collen, Victor and Michael for sharing your experiences and thoughts on the gift of faith. I always appreciate and enjoy what you bring forward.
No Anne, I have not read Ronald Rolheiser's book. Thank you for the lead, I think both me and my mom would enjoy it.And,thank you for your words of encouragement, they mean a lot!
Little House That Grew,
Welcome! Thank you for visiting here, I can feel your patriotic spirit and love for those whom have given their all for our great country! God bless you.
I can feel the joy in your writing when you speak of your faith. Faith is everything; it cuts through all the baggage that can cloud our journey, it can make sense of arguments that the heritics throw at us. When one is so open to Him as you are He really does use a person to do great things, usually with the person never knowing. As in todays Gospel, "...to anyone who has, more will be given..." Having great faith opens us up for the beautiful gifts of grace. An inspiring post. k
Hi Daily Grace
Thank you for this lovely personal post. Oh how right you are! Faith is indeed a gift from God.
I have no doubts about your grandfather's happy repose. I don't know if you agree with my thinking on this, but I don't think your grandfather really did lose his faith because if he had actually lost it, he wouldn't be looking for someone to restore it. He just wouldn't care about it. It was obviously still very important to him. To me that says that it was not lost, just weakened by the horrors he had seen and in need of rejuvinating. I hope what I am saying makes sense to you, it does to me. Sometimes though it is difficult to put on paper what we are trying to get across.
Anyway, thanks for sharing and God bless you.
Thank you KAM for your words of encouragement; faith does open us up for God's grace, thank you!
Breadgirl, what you say makes a lot of sense. Thank you for commenting. It was so good to hear from you.
Sorry that it took so long for me to answer these comments. My husband and I took my parents on vacation and we just returned late last night.
I have a lot of wonderful posts to catch up on from all of you...I'm looking forward to doing that this afternoon!
God bless you all!
There are some members of my family whose faith is strong, and some who have discarded their Catholic upbringing and embrace the secular life. I pray for them that they will find the joy and peace that faith and trust in God brings.
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