Day 214, August 2

This past Sunday, a man spoke on faith. His talk spurred me to think about my own faith. Do I have faith? Do I practice it? Do I use it to better my life and that of others? The answer is, "Sometimes."

My faith goes up and down. (A lot like my weight.) It is bolstered by the examples of others. I have been blessed with many examples of faith.

I've written in earlier posts about my Mormon ancestry, of those brave pioneers who left their homes to travel across the plains to the unknown land. Once there, they were called again to leave their homes and settle the harsh terriortory of Arizona. Their faith awes me. It humbles me. It inspires me.

More recently, I've watched dear friends forge their way through a different kind of pioneering as the husband has endured the treatment for leukemia: chemotherapy, a bone marrow transnplant, and now long months away from home so that he can be close to the hospital. Their faith has sustained them. Like my ancestors, they suffered, but they endured. And they continue to endure.

Faith does not vanquish life's problems. It is not a magic elixir. Faith is that bone-deep knowledge that we are not alone, that the Lord is at our side, even when we cannot feel Him, even when we willfully fail to acknowledge Him.

Faith does not vanquish life's problems. It is not a magic elixir. It is that bone-deep knowledge that the Lord is at our side, even when we do not feel Him, even when we willfully fail to acknowledge His presence. (Yes, to my shame, I have done that.)

So, for today, I am grateful for those who exercise their faith and inspire me to do the same.