Recommended by Richard Dawson, 5 December 2013

This article by Margaret Manning featured in the Autumn 2013 issue of SPANZ magazine:
What is the nature of faith? Is faith the sort of thing that is like an impenetrable fortress? Is it a sense of absolute certainty, as is found in mathematical formulae, with consistent and guaranteed results? Or is the nature of faith like the feeling one gets when barely hanging on—fingers fatigued, sweaty, and slowly slipping off of whatever prop, cliff, or ledge that holds one from falling into the abyss of disbelief?

I wonder about the nature of faith as I encounter so many different perspectives and experiences with faith. After profound loss, for example, many individuals suffer what is described as a ‘crisis of faith.’ All that seemed a sure foundation before the loss crumbles under the weight of crisis. For others, faith seems a swinging pendulum that vacillates between certainty and doubt. The poet Emily Dickinson wrote that “we both believe and disbelieve a hundred times an Hour…”.(1) Still for others faith is a constant assurance, a sense of strength and repose regardless of the assaults to it.

Of course, to ask about the nature of faith is to inquire about the nature of trust and belief. As such, it is not simply a conversation among religious adherents, but a real question over which humans wrestle whether they acknowledge it explicitly or not. We make decisions each and every day about whether or not we will trust the bus driver and the bus to get us to work. We make decisions to trust other drivers on the highway that they will keep their vehicles under control and not careen into our lane of traffic. We make decisions to trust individuals—spouses, children, friends, employers. The exercise of trust is a basic requirement for relationships and for living in this world.

This is why it is so interesting to me that talk of ‘faith’ is often relegated to the margin that is religious discourse. To have ‘faith’ or ‘trust’ or ‘belief’ in scientific studies is simply assumed because science has become the standard by which truth is measured. And yet, even scientists exercise ‘faith’ in a relationship to a tradition of knowledge. Assumptions, assured findings from the past, and the methods of science all become a part of the relationship between faith and knowledge. Sometimes, even this relationship comes under testing when what were once considered ‘true’ results are called into question by new assumptions and new data.(2) Relationships are dynamic; going through ebbs and flows, ups and downs, changes and stasis. As such, it seems a complete category mistake to speak of faith and certainty in the same sentence-even in the realm of science. As author Philip Yancey asserts about the necessary uncertainty of faith, “Doubt always coexists with faith, for in the presence of certainty who would need faith at all?”(3)

It is reasonable, then, to wonder aloud about the nature of faith. One ought to be wary of arriving at a simple definition. For C.S. Lewis, one of the great spokesmen on behalf of the Christianity, the nature of faith was complicated and something that was not easily understood. In his heart-wrenching memoir, A Grief Observed, Lewis writes: “You never know how much you really believe anything until its truth or falsehood becomes a matter of life and death to you. It is easy to say you believe a rope to be strong and sound as long as you are merely using it to cord a box.”(4) I believe Lewis articulates a profound dynamic of faith—one never really knows what it is until it is tested. Yet, once tested the true nature of one’s faith is revealed-even when it is revealed to be wanting. In these times, we can reflect honestly about that in which we’ve placed our trust and whether the subject or object of trust is warranted.

Yet, even here where one’s faith might be revealed for what it is and what it is not, there is room for growth and for hope. Philip Yancey reflects that,

“What gives me hope, though, is that Jesus worked with whatever grain of faith a person might muster. He did, after all honor the faith of everyone who asked, from the bold centurion to doubting Thomas to the distraught father who cried, ‘I do believe, help me overcome my unbelief!’”(5)

The true nature of faith is inextricably bound to relationship. As such, it is subject to all of the intricacies and complexities of relationship. At times unshakable and strong, and at other times revealed to be flabby and weak, the nature of faith is dynamic. But entering into a relationship of trust with the God revealed in Jesus of Nazareth assures me that despite the complexities, and despite my often small offering of faith, I am welcomed into a relationship anyway. And as my faith is tested, its true nature is progressively revealed.

(1) From a letter to Otis Lord, April 30, 1882; Thomas H. Johnson, ed., The Letters of Emily Dickinson (Cambridge: Belknap, 1958), 728.
(2) As is seen in the recent studies that showed a new gauge for cholesterol was flawed. Cardiologists learned that a new online calculator meant to help them determine a patient’s suitability for cholesterol treatment was flawed, doubling the estimated risk of heart attack or stroke for the average patient. See Gina Kolata, “Flawed gauge for cholesterol risk poses new challenge,” NY Times, November 18, 2013.
(3) Philip Yancey, Reaching for the Invisible God: What Do We Expect to Find? (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2000), 41.
(4) C.S. Lewis, A Grief Observed (New York: HarperCollins ebooks, 2009), loc 326-329.
(5) Philip Yancey, Reaching for the Invisible God: What Do We Expect to Find, 40.

Richard Dawson, 26 November 2013

The more I reflect on resisting evil the more I realize that the very act of taking a stand is often enough for evil to be thoroughly undone. Often the greatest weapon evil has in its arsenal is the deceit around how strong or how vital a certain evil it. The very thought that a certain evil cannot be overcome or cannot be resisted is often enough to guarantee that evil prospers. The giant Goliath, the walls of Jericho, the Red Sea and the Jordan all looked invincible until someone was willing to stand up to them and then they crumbled or gave way with barely a finger raised in their defense. And today we must remember that no evil stands with ultimate power even if sometimes evil can prevail for awhile. The question is, are we willing to speak the truth about such evil and stay wedded to the truth while others ridicule us. This also is a common theme in the fight against evil—the ridicule of those who are not prepared to admit the truth or make a stand against evil. However, let us not use the tactics of evil to face evil. The Bible is also against mockery and abuse and I suspect many good protest movements and some journalists resort to this quickly in an attempt to forward their cause. I don’t think this works. Proverbs 22 says… ‘Drive out the mocker, and out goes strife; quarrels and insults are ended.’ Using evil to defeat evil is a dangerous and dubious tactic. Better to stick with the truth delivered from a calm but determined heart. Then we model what lies behind the truth we speak and this reinforces our claim to be heard. The Bible says ‘Resist the devil and he will flee from you.’ How important this is.

Richard Dawson, 21 August 2013

Where does wisdom come in the listening to God’s whispers deal? What kind of wisdom is required to hear from God? As one who has really had to learn to listen because it did not come naturally I’ve discovered that many things in life can sound incredibly right and be incredibly wrong. It’s a bit like sinking your teeth into another big piece of Dairy milk chocolate—it seems so right until you next step on the scales. Wisdom is life’s set of scales—it gives us the truth about what we’re really getting ourselves into—no frills, no exaggeration, no maybe’s—wisdom is that thing, that piece of advice, that hard-to-hear ‘No’ that leads us away from a course of action that we really wanted to indulge in. Such wisdom almost always comes from the outside—a friend, a spouse, a leader, a good piece of television or other media, the Bible. When we really need a word of wisdom we seldom can look within because the very fact that we’re confused about something means we don’t have access within ourselves to the kind of advice we need. And the greatest skill which must be mastered in this regard is the skill of learning to ask others, of being prepared to risk hearing what we don’t want to hear by seeking advice. And it is the hardest skill because it requires us to be prepared to be vulnerable and to lay down a preferred course of action because someone else sees the pitfalls in it. Of course it will always be up to us to make the final decision and that’s as it should be. But the very fact that we now have another option, that our view isn’t the only view makes truly hearing much more likely. Ask, seek, knock—the way to wisdom!

Richard Dawson, 21 August 2013

We begin today a series on hearing God. It’s a subject fraught with complexity in some ways because hearing is always a two-way thing. It consists of both the act of speaking and the act of listening or hearing. Hearing is, in fact, not the same as listening. The great passage in Isaiah where God points out that Israel hears and hears but does not listen to God illustrates what I mean. I am sure we all know what it is to hear the words someone is saying but, because we’re not really present in the situation we are not really listening which means that effectively we haven’t heard what has been said. Speaking is also complex. We can never assume that because we’ve spoken we’ve been understood and again the OT is full of examples of the stylistic repetition of phrases in order to emphasise the meaning and also offer readers a second chance to really hear what is being said. Communication is simply not straight-forward. As we begin this series can I encourage you to dig deeper with God in regard to hearing Him. God is always speaking to us—that’s God’s nature. God is Word. And God is interested in the detail of our life—not just the big events but the small ones as well. God longs for us to share those small things with Him. This is, in many ways, what we mean when we say ‘God loves us.’ God is interested in the whole of our life—in all we are—the doubts and the confidence, the sadness and the joy, the frustrations and the triumphs. The next four weeks will enable us to work together on our hearing. Don’t miss it. Join a Small Group even if it’s just for this period. We’d love to listen to you!

Richard Dawson, 27 March 2013

It’s Easter friends and though we’ve not walked the Easter trail as carefully as we have in previous years we will certainly be celebrating it over the next couple of weeks. We just celebrated Palm Sunday —a day of triumph and glory for Jesus when He was welcomed by the people into the capital of Israel—Jerusalem. How amazing that this itinerant preacher/teacher could have captured the heart of the Jewish people in his short 3 years in ministry and this while concentrating on Galilee that land of pagans and half-castes. But the heart of humans is wicked and deceptive. This triumph lasts but a day or two. The people are willing to identify with a winner but not with a loser and that was what His arrest and trial made him into. I wish we’d learn from this terrible example of betrayal but aren’t we cut from the same cloth? How often do we identify closely with the losers in our society—the untalented, unhappy, unbeautiful, unsuccessful? How often do we make time for those who appear to be ‘of no use’ to us. These are the true poor in our society and they live lives largely of quiet desperation even if some do get used to it. Jesus didn’t just identify with these people—He became one of them. He lowered Himself to their level and He suffered as they suffer. His was the path downwards and it is a path every Christian needs to take for without it we will not get to know our Lord and Saviour. You see it is one thing to acknowledge Jesus as Lord but it is quite another to follow that same Lord to the places where He loved to ply His trade—to the outcast, the sick, the discarded of His own people. This is the call of Easter.

Richard Dawson, 26 February 2013

Some things seem terribly important to us when we are parenting. They seem to be things which we think must happen for, or in, our children and we tend to panic when either we don’t see these things happening or when something the opposite occurs. Things like an early pregnancy, drug use or self-harm are indeed, pretty serious and should never be taken lightly but so much depends on our attitude and approach. If we are condemning and angry whenever things are not going as we think they should for our children we will lose much of the influence we have with them. And this goes for much lesser things such as how children talk to us, how they approach school work and how they contribute to the household. We know these things are important but what is even more important is how we coach our children and how we communicate with them. I am always impressed by parents who take time with their children. I think this makes up for all sorts of other sins and so much of what we are rubs off on them during these extended moments.
Furthermore I am impressed by parents who are able to stay calm when children are not behaving. There is a place for expressing some anger but how we express it is so important. Yelling, screaming and becoming physical only buys into their world. We are better to warn, to cajole and even to plead and then, if all else fails, to let their actions reap the consequences we have warned them of. Of course we need to keep them safe and this may require a stronger hand. But what counts most is that after they’ve calmed down we are still available.

Richard Dawson, 30 January 2013

In many ways I just wish politics would go away. I mean I’m just too busy dealing with my day to day existence and the problems this throws up to really be bothered with an institution that seems to offer more problems than it solves. And yet I know, deep down that unless someone responsible takes the helm politically in this nation we end up offering enormous power by default to people who are just not suited to it (if anyone is suited to the reigns of power!) Politics and those in power are here to stay; it’s a part of our social existence—it’s a bit like the water fish swim in. So we can’t just ignore it and hope it will go away or, more commonly, look for some apolitical manner of living. Which is why I’ve put the petition about the decision of the Southern District Hospital Board to unilaterally exclude the largest geriatric health provider in Otago/Southland from the contractual landscape this year before you. PSO currently administers 42% of the SDHB. They are the oldest and largest provider by a country mile and they clearly offer the best service overall. So why would the SDHB move to exclude them? My best guess is that this is an attempt to apply an old corporate political philosophy to their business model—basically, divide and conquer. By getting rid of the largest local provider of health care for our old people and bringing in a complete unknown from Australia they can do more of their business in the dark. They can make changes for which they are naturally far less accountable because the provider who knows most about the business is no longer in the game. We need to register our disquiet.