Faith Matters

Sometimes, I find it hard to completely trust other people. I'm not talking about the kind of casual trust we tend to have all the time. We trust other drivers on the road, on some level, to be responsible. We trust parents to take care of their children. We trust athletes to do their best in representing their teams. We trust our families to more or less love us as we are. We trust spouses to treat us with love and respect. We trust the mailman to deliver the mail and the weatherman to give his best weather forecast. We trust people in so many different ways every day that we don't even realize we have trust in someone until we lose that trust. When, in some way, our trust is betrayed,  we become reacquainted with that seed of doubt and caution that serves as a layer of protection.

 

I'm interested in a deep-down-to-the-soles-of-your-feet kind of trust. It's more faith than trust. It's the sort of thing that allows you to completely surrender your mind and body into someone else's care and protection. That's not something that's easily earned. It requires a surrender of self that doesn't come naturally to adults. We make mistakes. We betray trusts. It may not be on purpose. It happens. That's not a condemnation. It's human nature. That's why I find it so hard to completely trust, or to have faith in, others.

 

I was in a position where I needed to have faith in someone this week. I had to trust my doctors to complete a medical procedure to the best of their ability. I had to trust their staff to prepare and perform their jobs well and efficiently. I had to have faith that this would happen while I was completely helpless.

 

I remember laying back on the surgical table, made as comfortable as possible with a pillow and blankets.  I closely watched the surgeon's face as I breathed deeply. I saw an expression of concern and concentration. It was compassionate and calming. He and his staff helped me move beyond trust to the calming reassurance of faith. I am grateful.

It's a crazy world we live in. Perhaps, if more of us can find someone in whom we can have faith, we will be able to find an element of peace in our lives that goes beyond what we can see and touch. Faith really does matter.

 

From Google and the Merriam-Webster Dictionary:

Trust: Firm belief in the reliability, truth, ability, or strength of someone or something.

1a : assured reliance on the character, ability, strength, or truth of someone or something b : one in which confidence is placed

2 a : dependence on something future or contingent : hope

Faith: Complete trust or confidence in someone or something.

1 a : allegiance to duty or a person : loyalty b (1) : fidelity to one's promises (2) : sincerity of intentions

2 a (1) : belief and trust in and loyalty to God (2) : belief in the traditional doctrines of a religion b (1) : firm belief in something for which there is no proof (2) : complete trust