Throughout time and across most historical records, people have been asked to have faith in some all-knowing, omnipotent deity in one form or another. Whether snake worship with human sacrifice or God in heaven above, we are all asked to have faith. Who is doing the asking? Well, just about everyone. From your neighbor next door to your boss at work and from the sidewalk preacher to the bicycle-riding advocates, there is always someone asking you to have faith. Some people are very subtle about the way they introduce their doctrine, others try to ram it down your throat. All in all, wherever you turn, someone is preaching about faith.
[...] With hurricane Katrina virtually destroying New Orleans and the surrounding area, with our sons and daughters fighting a war in Iraq and the general unrest of the world as whole, it is a boon to have strong faith in something that will override your fears and doubts and leave you comforted in your darkest hour. It seems to me that as we progress more in the areas of science, medicine and research, we discover even more devastating and debilitating diseases, conditions and general maladies that have no cure. [...]
[...] In speaking with my wife, a registered nurse for over 12 years, patients who benefit the most from various treatments are those who profess to have extreme faith. There is not a single entity where these patients placed their faith. Instead, there was a vast array of different beliefs that allowed people to believe and to know in their heart that things would work out and that there was a plan for them somewhere. These people included patients who suffered from incurable cancer, from crushing migraine headaches, from the disabling and painful effects of peripheral neuropathy, from the rapid growth of malignant tumors and many other disorders. [...]
[...] This is one of the strongest factors in deciding to have faith in some entity or belief and developing that faith to its furthest extent. Once you exhaust all of the known remedies and treatments, including the unconventional ones, the only alternative is to have faith. Your faith must ensure you that even though you are suffering, there is some higher purpose behind it and you will be rewarded in the end. Your faith should comfort you with the fact (note I said fact because our faith is so strong) that even though you are suffering now, there is a light at the end of the tunnel. [...]
[...] There are hurdles, major events and even catastrophes in life that will make you question your faith on a regular basis. Your goal in the face of these events is to maintain a level of faith that offers some comfort for you. We are all human and will most definitely question our faith on a regular basis. When you reach the point when you can squash those doubts with your faith, you will be ahead of the crowd. Spend some time determining where your faith lies, develop that faith, and employ that faith in your every [...]
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