Sunday, February 7, 2010

My dearest God,

Is there such a thing as generational faith? Can the faith of a grandparent influence faith in the next generation? What is the means by which faith is truly passed?

I cannot imagine having faith today if it were not for my grandmother. And it was not so much what she told me about you but about what I saw in her. Her gentle, tender care, her loving ways, her compassion, the way she looked when she played hymns by ear and the way she read her bible every day touched me in a way that shaped my faith. I wanted the God she loved. By her actions I wanted you as the driving force in my life.

Today my daughter turns 35. She will rise from her bed this morning, feed her three children and then get them ready for church. They will sing praise, pray together, hug their friends, give their gifts and worship. And faith will stir in her children, my own grandchildren.

From one generation to another, O Lord, I see how faith has traveled. I hear the words, see the actions and observe the ways of faith. From my grandmother to my grandchildren, five generations, I have witnessed faith come alive. Although I see signs of faith being lived, I still wonder about the mystery of faith's stirring in a single human heart and the means by which it is passed from one generation to another.

Why do
some people
have faith
and others
do not?
Why are
some drawn
to you naturally
and others
are not?
Will the
whole world
have faith
some day?
What role
do each
of us play
in carrying faith
into the world,
carrying you?

Love, Andrea