On a Scale From 1 to 10 - How Strong is Your Faith?

When asked 'On a scale from 1 to 10 - how strong is your faith', we are quick to put up 10 fingers.  But would our lives reflect that?

This discrepancy between what we profess to believe and how we actually live is not new.  To solve this we encourage each other to make God apart of their day, every day; perhaps by scheduling in some worship time before work or committing to read through the Bible in a year.  I'm not saying these things are bad, it just doesn't appear as though this works for any length of time for most people.  Before long they have a project come up at work and no longer have time to spend with God in the mornings.  Or they go on vacation and begin to miss their daily Bible readings and never to take them up again.  Christians become convinced that if they just had more discipline, they would be more spiritual.  Many who look at Christians see a group of people who's lives don't match their belief system. 

Or do their lives match their beliefs?

I don't think the problem is with the way Christians live.  The problem is with how much they actually believe.  How much discipline does it take for you to go to work each day?  Do you have to remind or discipline yourself to go in?  Do you keep renewing commitments like 'this week I'm going to go to work everyday, no matter what'?  I'm guessing you don’t.  I'm guessing you get up every weekday and some weekends and spend 8-12 hours a day at work without much thought at all.  Why is it that it takes less discipline to work 50 hours every week for 45 years than it does to read a few chapters in the Bible everyday for the next year?

The answer may seem obvious.  If I don't work, I don't get paid.  If I don't get paid, I can't make my mortgage and car payments.  If I don't get paid, I can't afford to send the kids to college.  If I don't get paid, I can't travel home this Christmas.  There are other kinds of reasons too.  If I stop showing up to work, everyone will think I'm lazy.  If I lost this job, I might end up working at a Taco Bell somewhere.  If I don't show up, I might not get my promotion.  If asked 'on a scale from 1 to 10 - how important is your work', we might reply with something like 'I care about being a productive member of society, but the money's not all that important.  I just want to make enough for my family to be 'comfortable'.  So we might answer with a 6 out of 10.  We don't value it that highly yet we show up everyday for years without hesitation.

So how do we reconcile this?  If our faith is the most important thing and work is significantly less important, why do we spend so much more time working than building our faith?  Why do we have to discipline ourselves to read the Bible or pray, but then bring our Blackberries home and continue to work off the clock?

I believe it comes down to a couple of issues;  

First, work provides tangible benefits that we believe will add to our happiness.  We know when we're hired how much we will make and if we'll have a dental plan.  We know what level of income will cover our current lifestyle.  We know how much respect a director's title and corner office provide.  As Christians, we are promised Heaven.  Unfortunately we don't know much about Heaven and what's written doesn't necessarily sound all that appealing.  Worshiping God all day and night sounds like…well to be honest, it sounds like work.  The streets of gold thing is enticing, but I'm guessing gold isn't a form of currency in Heaven.  As for earth, we're promised that God will work with us to develop things like character and patience. (Rom 8:29, Gal 5:22) Hmmmm...are those redeemable for a cash value?  Because frankly, I have all the patience I want!

Second, at work we are confident we will get paid.  If your new boss gave you his word that you would eventually be paid for all your work and he just wasn't sure when; how long would you work on that promise alone?  My guess is not very long, if at all.  I certainly wouldn't.  To work at all would take a fair amount of trust in your boss and his character, and to work for years without pay would take a great deal of trust.  God has given us a promise that we will be rewarded after we die.  However, we don't know when that will happen.  And frankly, a lifetime is long time to work just on the promise that it will be worth our while.

When it comes to spiritual things, you really have to trust (or have faith) in God, his goodness and unchanging character before you'll be willing to spend your time on something you're not even sure you'll want  and that you won't get for a really long time. 

The problem is a lack of faith not a lack of discipline.

At the end of the day, our lives do reflect our belief systems.  We spend time, money and energy on those things we care about.  If it snows at the beginning of the week, many will skip church because 'the roads are too bad'.  But how many of those same folks miss work the next day?  If everyone was honest, first with themselves and then others, God would rank well below many other items in our lives.  Consider your day; compare how many hours you spend in spiritual pursuits to how many you give to your employer.  How about compared to your softball league?  Compared to TV?  Compared to family?  Compared to Facebook?

I'm not bringing this up to make people feel guilty.  Guilt won't fix the problem anymore than discipline will.  But we can't fix a problem until we know what's broken.  The problem is not how much time you have.  The problem is not that you don't have enough money.  The problem is not lack of self-discipline.  The problem is a lack of faith.

If I believed a little more that God is real…

If I believed a little more Bible is true…
If I believed a little more in Christ's love for me...

If I believed a little more that this life is a small blip of time compared to eternity… 

If I really believed a little more in Hebrews 11:6... I would live my life very very differently. 

Hebrews 11:6 "Now without faith it is impossible to please him, for the one who approaches God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him."