Faith in dark times is hard, but it’s also an act of courage to stand in the dark and believe that there is light around you. The smallest flame in the dark has an impact, so your faith doesn’t have to be huge, it just needs a flicker to help you shift your perspective. Faith that it will get better, that we will figure it out, that the universe has our back.
I believe that faith is an act of courage. I tell myself those exact words almost weekly. Faith and fear are in constant struggle with each other, so if I have faith. Courage is choosing to look fear in the face and move forward. Courage can show up in many ways, but having faith is one way to be courageous – to do the hard things, to take an unpopular stance, and to make the change. Faith is what gives you the courage to do it. It could be faith in yourself, your God, the universe, or something else, but faith is what gives you that extra push to get through the fear to the other side.
To me, it’s simple- when we lack faith, we typically find ourselves in fear. We can only be strong in one or the other- think of it as a tug of war some days, faith wins and some days fear wins. We have control over what is winning that tug of war in our lives at each moment. When we lack faith, we allow our fears to drive our decisions. Our goal should be to find faith and use our faith to allow us to have the courage to move forward, even in the face of fear.
What’s the worst thing that can happen? What is the absolute worst thing that could happen if you make that decision, take that risk? Put words to it – verbalize the worst-case scenario. If that scenario is really bad – loss of business, a relationship, financial hardship, etc then maybe you don’t make that decision right now. If the worst thing that can happen once you verbalize it isn’t as bad as it sounds, then that informs your decision and quiets the fear. Whatever the situation is, you have to ensure that you are not letting fear decide for you – be honest with yourself about the worst-case scenario and then make a decision based on that. Choose faith – faith in yourself, your ambitions, and your dreams.
Examine what areas in your life you are lacking faith in and figure out a way to increase your faith in that area. It can be as simple as identifying the things that you do know, the knowledge you have, and the answers you already know. When you start to see a small glimmer of faith around a decision, situation, or tough thing you have to deal with, take a step forward. All you need is a small dose of faith to give you the confidence to keep moving in courage. Be courageous and have faith – you got this!
