What My Faith Does for Me

David Lockwood

July 15, 2015

For those who would ask, “What’s in it for me?” here are five benefits that I directly derive from my spiritual faith, given from the most practical and pragmatic perspective that I can confer.

1. My faith delivers me from self. It gets my focus off of me, and onto God where it belongs. I rejected the self-centered life when I discovered that it was shallow and bore little meaning. Belief in God and others enriches my life immensely. It grants me purpose and significance, both daily and eternally.

2. My faith shows me positive heroes. As I read the Biblical text, I note the personal and professional achievements of men and women of faith. I visualize myself as able to emulate their examples. I consider that if these historic figures were able accomplish, believing in a Higher Power and a Higher cause than themselves, so can I.

3. My faith grants me a sense of belonging. The Biblical New Testament confers spiritual adoption and acceptance into God’s family. Historically, individuals throughout the sacred text derived placement and significance from their ancestral and spiritual roots. As a believer in Christ, I belong to a unique spiritual heritage. I also belong to the extended family that is my local congregation.

4. My faith gives me strength and builds my resolve. With it, I have profound ability to face challenges and perform at an elevated level of efficiency and productivity because I draw from a Power greater than my own. Faith aligns my mind, will, and emotions, causing me to be more disciplined, dedicated, determined, and accomplished. Faith grants me power to persist, endure, and achieve. For me, faith is not a crutch; it is a catalyst.

5. My faith frees me to love and trust again. It allows me to cast all animosity, anger, and anxiety onto the God Who is able to lift my emotional burdens and restore my soul. The Faith within me fosters both repentance and forgiveness. It is the mechanism by which I accept God’s love, and how I share His love with others. My faith allows me to see the virtue in God, the best in humankind.

I invite you to live a life of divine faith.