Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. (Hebrews 11:1)
"And acceptance is the answer to all my problems today. When I am disturbed, it is because I find some person, place, thing, situation -- some fact of my life -- unacceptable to me, and I can find no serenity until I accept that person, place, thing, or situation as being exactly the way it is supposed to be at this moment. Nothing, absolutely nothing happens in God's world by mistake. Until I could accept my alcoholism, I could not stay sober;
Unless I accept life completely on life's terms, I cannot be happy. I need to concentrate not so much on what needs to be changed in the world as on what needs to be changed in me and in my attitudes." Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition p. 417 Copyright 1976 A.A.W.S. Inc.
This has been an interesting week. On Monday of this past week, fresh from a week with my wife on vacation, I returned to work and encountered something that inspired me to write this entry. Many of you may not know but my job consists of working with individuals who have had a traumatic brain injury (TBI). I help them with vocational counseling, whether that consists of helping them accept what they can no longer do or to explore careers that a person who suffers an injury of this type can pursue based on their symptoms and ability post-injury. I encountered a situation this week that inspired the thoughts that I now "put to paper". I'll give a little information that is general in nature due to confidentiality. I saw someone who was trained for a very high level military job and at the conclusion of their training, before they began their career, they were injured in an accident. This accident resulted in injuries that eliminated the possibility of this individual being able to fulfill their career aspirations and left them with devastating injuries that medical science says will hinder this person from being able to be independent for the rest of his life. This medical opinion was reinforced by many different specialists in many different parts of the country. Injuries of this type keep an individual from completing any complex task (or from multi-tasking). Injuries like this also keep an individual from committing information to short-term memory so that it eventually can be stored in long-term memory. In other words, it limits the ability to learn new information and also the ability to act on old information in a complex way. A person with this type of injury can go from being one of the highest functioning individuals that you can describe to one who is very much like a five year old. Often times, a person who suffers this type of injury must have supervision and a caregiver 24 hours a day. A meeting occurred with the family of one such individual this past week. As we sat in the meeting with various trainied speicialty physicians and specialists from various fields, I listened as each in turned talked about the individual and the fact that medically, everything had been done for the individual that could be completed in a hospital setting. The family needed to look at the reality of taking the person home or to a structured environment where little, if any progress, would be made in the future in regard to improvement. Also in question was this persons ability to find meaning in some type of work if they were able to work at all. Also sitting in the room, and the center of this meeting and the reason for which is was called, were the parents. After each medical professional gave their opinion, the mother and father of this individual stated that they believed that their child will improve and will have a greater purpose than the consensus of opinions around the room. They also stated in no uncertain terms that they would keep "pushing" against the opinion of the medical community that further progress would be made. They would continue to advocate for therapy and treatment of their son, even if the medical community said that he had reached maximum benefit from the treatment. Were they in denial? Many sitting in that room probably thought so. But I venture another opinion. I believe that they illustrate what is means to have faith. They did not deny their son medical treatment in the hopes that God would perform a miracle apart from the normal established God-given abilities of medical treatment. Rather, they availed themselves of every type of medical treatment that modern science offered. In fact, they had searched all over the country for medical alternatives. They were availing themselves of everything that God had placed at their disposal but when the knowledge of those disciplines had reached it's limits, instead of giving up, they continued to push and chose to believe that God was able to push the boundaries of science and do what man cannot do.
Do I know what the outcome of this situation is going to be? No. Do I believe they are in denial. No. They know what the medical facts are. They are just believing God for something greater, whatever method He chooses to use. Whether it is medical science or the miraculous, God is always bigger than the circumstance.
I have also spent several years of my career as a Substance Abuse Counselor. The "acceptance paragraph" which is quoted from the Alcoholics Anonymous Big Book, is a classic statement and foundation for recovery. It keeps individuals who are struggling with addiction from getting frustrated with themselves and others. It is profound in it's simplicity. However, acceptance is not a substitute for faith. It is the foundation on which faith is built. It is knowing that things are the way they are because that is the way they are. However, faith is believing that God is bigger than the way that things are and can change them. Faith is believing that HE will change them while I am still living in the way that they are. Living is not waiting. It is walking in the midst of. It is accepting but trusting in the God of change.
I saw faith in action this week. When you see it, don't expect everyone around you to understand it. Only those who are seeking to walk by faith will understand faith when they see it in others. Even then it is a mystery beyond understanding. But don't mistake faith for denial. Denial is the refusal to see things as they are. Faith is the ability to see things as they are but choosing to go beyond to the way that they can be with the God of creation on the scene. FAITH IS SUBSTANCE. FAITH IS THE MATTER. FAITH MAKES WHAT IS UNSEEN MORE REAL THAT WHAT IS SEEN.
