“Faith is the art of holding on to things in spite of your changing moods and circumstances.”
-C.S. Lewis
Faith
I don’t think the concept of having faith belongs to any one religion or spiritual practice. Perhaps it is a human condition to want to have faith in something bigger than our existence. Maybe faith can be defined as simply letting go of our own expectations and hoping for the best outcomes.
What we hold on to in our moments of humanness is important for both mental relief and spiritual growth. After all, how many of us step into our power and purpose knowing the exact unfolding of it all? There is only so much certainty allowed here on Earth!
Even if you’ve been spiritually leveling up for while, you know it’s not always easy to believe in ourselves or in a divine plan of some sort. Sometimes it’s challenging to believe our actions will make a difference at all. Those Dark Night of the Soul moments can really test you! Those moments can also strengthen you and your ability to “let go and let God”.
Experience Makes It Easier
It can be hard for our human side to accept the fact that we don’t know. We don’t know how making one decision over the other will play out in 5 years or how that person will react. This is when experience helps strengthen our ability to trust and let go of needing answers to every situation.
Growing up Catholic, I remember praying all the time and listening to Bible stories. There were times I felt a spiritual connection to God and truly tried to understand the concept of trusting in His will. Nothing seemed to grant me the ability to have faith for long, and, at one point, I didn’t believe humanity had any purpose. It wasn’t until I began diving deeper into my unique path (and inner healing) in 2016 where I experienced what it meant to have truly have faith. At several points in time, it was the only thing fueling me.
Due to these contrasting experiences on my spiritual path, I’m more aware of how to integrate my human side and my soul side. I’m able to trust God on a much deeper level than before. It wasn’t easy to get to this point though. Without knowing the feeling of hopelessness, and living without meaning, my faith wouldn’t have been as strong as it is now. I wouldn’t have been as strong, either, or have stories to share through this blog.
Each time I let go of the stress of how, when, or why things happen, God stepped in with impeccable timing. I was humbly put into a better place in life. It inspires me to dedicate more of my life to spiritual work.
Choose Inner Peace
I don’t know about you, but my mind can get entangled in many “what if” situations. It usually leads me to be indecisive, even with simple decisions. When I’m in those moments of anxiety, I find it most difficult to surrender to the the unknown.
It’s important not to confuse “letting go of control” with “carelessness” or “apathy”. We need to be aware of our conscious minds when we are practicing having more trust in our purpose, ourselves, and in God. We still need to choose actions that align with who we are working towards becoming. It takes daily awareness just as it takes daily awareness to develop better lifestyle habits. From managing our negative thoughts to taking time each day to reflect on our actions, living a more spiritual life has its challenges.
When we have to make decisions based only on our intuition, it can be scary to trust we are making the “right” choice for our unique path. When we feel we have no choice but to follow our passions and purpose, we have to have faith in ourselves when outsiders may question your actions. We have to have faith that we will get through hardships whether it be financial constraints, school stress, or health challenges. It does take some cognitive training. However, I’ve noticed that when an action is truly aligned, and you believe in a positive outcome, the stress of being human lessens greatly. From that place, you can learn to co-create with your world and not worry about outcomes as often.
Faith isn’t simply a last minute resort, but it can be! In my opinion, humanity needs every last drop of Light to get through the collective Dark Night of the Soul we’ve all been going through. It reminds me of the Bible quote: “If you faith the size of a mustard seed…nothing will be impossible for you.” Having the tiniest ounce of faith is better than nothing. I still choose to have faith in humanity and in God’s plan during this time.
Perhaps having to go against our logical senses is a never ending lesson. When the world tells you all is lost, I encourage you to create a new story for yourself and for future generations. Yes, people might get annoyed at you for choosing to take action from a more spiritual place and maintain your inner peace, but seriously, that’s on them! We aren’t all made to be doomsday preppers. We aren’t made to be stuck in religious confinement as well.
As long as I’m alive, I choose to have faith in something greater than my human self. I’ve lived a good chunk of my life without purpose or faith. I don’t see myself venturing back there. I’m grateful to be this far in my spiritual journey and to be humbled by God in such incredible ways.
I’m also grateful for you! Thanks for reading. đŸ™‚
Angie Vargas. 2022. All Rights Reserved.
Angie is a poet, Christian life coach & wife on a mission to share the transformative power & love of God.