Rich Dixon is thinking.
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I’ve been pondering this idea:
Faith is not a synonym for belief.
Faith is the trust behind our beliefs AND our doubts.
It took me a while to realize my faith is constant, but my beliefs tend to shift and grow. And I certainly have all sorts of doubts and questions about the mysteries of an infinite Creator.
I used to think I had to keep those doubts and questions secret, because they indicated some sort of lack of faith. Now I realize questions and doubts are part of faith.
An example – I know Jesus cares for every single trafficked child more than I can possibly imagine, so why does he allow the abuse to continue? I absolutely believe he has the power to stop it. All of it. Right now. So, why doesn’t he?
An atheist might say that’s proof he doesn’t exist. Or, if he does, he certainly isn’t who he claims to be.
My faith says Jesus is exactly who he claims to be. As I study and learn more, I might get a slightly better picture of what that means. But I’ll never know all there is to know – because I’m finite and he’s infinite. That’s the trust part.
In one sense, however, Jesus simplified things. He distilled everything into “Love God and love your neighbor.” So, while we do our Bible studies and dig into the intricacies of Scripture, he said clearly that we ought to do those two things.
He also said (The Good Samaritan) that our neighbor isn’t necessarily the person like us or the person next door. “Neighbor,” to Jesus, was a moral issue, not a geographic or demographic or nationalistic one.
Our team is just about ready to launch FREEDOM TOUR 2026. As we have since 2013, we’ll support the kids at Project Rescue’s Home of Hope, 22 kids we’ll never meet who don’t look like us and live halfway around the world.
I hope you’ll join us.
