Con Fé

Today as I read Hebrews 11 for my devotions, I became very interested in the idea of faith. Of course, I've read this chapter and heard this chapter read aloud multiple times before, but today something struck me. I began to wonder, what exactly does faith mean?

Hebrews 11:1 (ESV) defines faith as 

• assurance of things hoped for
• conviction of things not seen.

Webster's Dictionary defines faith as 

• loyalty
• the sincerity of intentions
• belief and trust in God and traditional doctrines of religion
• firm belief in something for which there is no proof
• complete trust
• belief with strong conviction

The idea of complete trust really struck me today, and I pondered this thought as I went about my day. Today I talked with a friend about life past, present, and future. She asked me if God has ever let me down before, to which I responded with, "Of course not!" Her next question hit home, "Do you have faith that He will provide for you in the future?" There it was again...FAITH! 

I thought to myself, 'Do I have complete trust that God will provide for me in the future?' - I like to think that I do, but often when I think about MY plans, I don't consider how God is using me in the current moment/situation. I don't consider the necessary preparations that must be done in order for future plans to be carried out. It boils down to getting caught up so much in my plans, that I forget to consider God's plan and God's timing. 

Faith - I need to let go of my dreams and desires, and pray hard for the heart of the Lord and HIS will for my life. I've been asked many times in the last three days when I will come back to teach. I always answer the same, "Cuando Dios me permite." (When God allows me.) However, because I've said it so many times over, I'm beginning to lose faith in that statement. Tonight, with a different friend I chose to respond by saying, "If it is God's will, I will return one day. At this time, I don't know when that will be." This felt so much better than the almost sarcastic sounding, "Cuando Dios me permite."

Aside from some pretty heavy conversations today, I shared Chinese lunch and a nice walk with Mary, a Canadian whom I taught with at LISOFT in 2009. I also spent my evening with two Peruvian teachers from LISOFT, Amelia and Gabby. We shared a very nice conversation over dinner at the food court in the mall and later went to a Karaoke lounge for some fun entertainment. It was much different than I imagined it to be, but all in all, it was a blast! 

Amelia and me at the Karaoke Lounge :)