Tuesday, November 08, 2011

Writing a Faith Paper

Do any of you have trouble talking about your relationship with God to other people?   I do.  Why is that?  Are we afraid others will think we are weird?   Maybe we just don't know what to say?  It is socially acceptable to show excitement about a baseball team, TV show or great book.  Why is it so hard to show excitement about God?  Why is it difficult to acknowledge our source of strength? 

At our church there is a tradition for our confirmation students, 10th graders, to write a Faith Paper.  It is a story of their faith journey.  They work hard on these papers, which they later read to the congregation, and they really pour their hearts into them.  I think it takes a lot of courage and probably builds character for these kids to stand up in front of everyone and tell their life story as it relates to their belief in God. 

When listening to these kids read their Faith Papers, I am often blown away by some of the trials they have been through.  It is amazing, really.  I worship with these kids, talk with them, and sometimes never know the drama they've had to deal with already in their young lives.  The rough times they've been through, though, are often moments they later realize positively impacted their belief system.


Mike with Bailey the day Bailey read his Faith Paper
(photo courtesy of Nicole Z.)

I sometimes think about what I would write in a Faith Paper.  How about you?  What would you write if you were to publicly discuss your faith journey?  What events in your life led you to where you now are in your faith? 

I believe this would be a good exercise for all of us.  I've decided that I am going to write a Faith Paper.  OK, maybe it will be a Faith Blog Post, but you get the idea.  I was wondering if any of you would like to do the same.  I know that many of my readers are believers and each of you have a story.  If someone were to ask you about your own faith story, what would you tell them?

Soon, I will post my own Faith Paper.  It won't be filled with drama.  It may even be boring, I don't know.  I'm going to put some thought into it.  What I'd really love is to read your Faith Papers as well.  If you have your own blog and decide to do this, let me know and I will direct my readers to your blog.  If you are not a blogger, you are welcome to e-mail your Faith Paper to me and I will post it here.  If you choose to let me post it, tell me if it is OK to use your name or if you'd prefer it to be anonymous.  My e-mail address is onlythemanager@yahoo.com.  I really, really hope someone else will be willing to join me on this idea.


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