blind faith? no thanks

blind faith
I've heard it boasted by believers
"I have blind faith that God is going to..."

I've heard it directed as a derision toward believers
"their faith has blinded them to...
truth
reality
_(fill in the blank)_"

hearing those two words coupled,

always in regards to faith in God,

makes me cringe

why?

because of the understanding I have of them

blind-unable or unwilling to see
        a place to hide when hunting prey
        to cause someone not to be able to see

faith-complete trust and/or confidence

it's amazing what we put our faith in without blinking an eye:

every time we sit in a chair we have faith it is going to hold us, 
even though we have seen people end up on the floor

we lock our doors, in faith the lock will hold if someone tries to enter, 
knowing that sometimes they don't work

we set an alarm clock, in faith it will go off at the right time, 
even though we know the electric could go out 
or there could be a user error

when we order food at a restaurant we have faith

• the person cooking will get it right
• they washed their hands before cooking it
• the same is true for the person who took our order 
• and the one who delivers it

even though we have heard the reports of HepA or food poisoning

each time we get into a vehicle we are exercising faith

• the vehicle is going to get us from point a to point b
• other drivers are going to stay in their lanes
• traffic lights are set so that there will not be a collision  

even though we have seen 

• vehicles along the side of the road
• the "weavers"
• the aftermath of accidents       

why do we have faith that those things (and many more) are going to be true?

why do we not think about them and worry over them?

why do we not make fun of others (unless they obsess that those things are not going to happen as expected)?

because of experience- ours and others

we have seen "that's the way it works", work far more often than it doesn't-
we don't consciously think about it, unless we have had an unfortunate experience with any of those things-if we have then we are more likely to "test" the chair, to cook at home rather than chance food poisoning, to double check the locks, the alarms, and the oncoming traffic even though we have a green light...

why, then do we struggle with faith in God?
perhaps it is because of experiences,
of understanding
or misunderstandings
ours and others

I cannot
I will not
have/exercise/teach/expect blind faith

my personal experience has taught me better

blind-unable or unwilling to see
     
I have seen too much

• ugliness
• pain
• evil
• brokenness
• suffering
• goodness
• redemption
• mercy
• forgiveness
• love
• beauty

to not have faith, to not trust in the One I cannot see

blind-a place to hide when hunting prey

I am not looking for a place to hide
waiting for an opportune time to pounce on someone,
intent on tracking, trapping to have a trophy or destroying

blind-to cause someone not to be able to see clearly

I refuse to water down the Gospel

• to whitewash sin
• to diminish the reality of struggles
• to hide the the hard truths of Christianity
• to downplay the cost of discipleship

This is what I know, this is what my faith is based on:

God is good, all of the time.

Life is hard, sometimes a lot of the time.

God loves me, all of the time.

In the storms and chaos and on the calm, restful days.

God is a faithful provider.

Always of what I need, not always what I want.

God has an eternal purpose He is working, all of the time.

Even when I do not see or understand or agree.

Because of my life's experiences my faith is anything but blind.

"Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen."

Hebrews 11:1