What\\u2019s the Trend?<\\/h4>\\n I teach at the university near my home. It is a Christian school, but obviously, having a Christian faith is not a prerequisite for attending the school. One of the first assignments in my classes is to have the students share as much of their faith story with me as they\\u2019re comfortable with. It is always very shocking. Most of the Gen Z-ers I teach were raised in Christian homes. However, only a small percentage of them hold to the faith of their parents. Some have stopped believing altogether, some have become much less traditional in their theology, and some have become bitter and angry with God and the Church. The bottom line for many of them is that after asking the question, \\u201cIs living a life of faith worth it?\\u201d they\\u2019ve answered with a resounding \\u201cNo!\\u201d<\\/p>\\n

{"id":374,"date":"2024-05-09T14:37:34","date_gmt":"2024-05-09T18:37:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/findingyourwayback\/?p=374"},"modified":"2024-05-09T14:38:31","modified_gmt":"2024-05-09T18:38:31","slug":"is-living-a-life-of-faith-really-worth-it","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/findingyourwayback\/2024\/05\/is-living-a-life-of-faith-really-worth-it\/","title":{"rendered":"Is Living a Life of Faith Really Worth It?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

"Frustrated

Frustrated with Faith \u2013 Courtesy of Vecteezy<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

Is living a life of faith really worth it? It seems like so much trouble: reading your Bible, praying, attending church, being nice to people\u2026what\u2019s in it for me? This is the sentiment of so many people. And in some ways, you can\u2019t blame people for being burnt out on faith.<\/p>\n

What\u2019s the Trend?<\/h4>\n I teach at the university near my home. It is a Christian school, but obviously, having a Christian faith is not a prerequisite for attending the school. One of the first assignments in my classes is to have the students share as much of their faith story with me as they\u2019re comfortable with. It is always very shocking. Most of the Gen Z-ers I teach were raised in Christian homes. However, only a small percentage of them hold to the faith of their parents. Some have stopped believing altogether, some have become much less traditional in their theology, and some have become bitter and angry with God and the Church. The bottom line for many of them is that after asking the question, \u201cIs living a life of faith worth it?\u201d they\u2019ve answered with a resounding \u201cNo!\u201d<\/p>\n

Why So Bitter?<\/h4>\n My findings are purely anecdotal. I know there are bona fide polls and studies<\/a> showing similar trends, but my observations are casual. The reasons my students have parted ways with their faith are numerous. There are almost as many reasons as there are students. However, most fit into two major categories. One, some tragedy or string of unpleasant circumstances have happened in their lives, making them feel as though God didn\u2019t care. Surprisingly, the death of a grandparent seems to top the list. Also frequently mentioned are the divorce of parents, terminal or debilitating diseases in the immediate family, traumatic events (rape, abortion, parents\u2019 loss of job), and unanswered prayers (many times regarding one of the above situations). The recovery from these kinds of wounds<\/a> is a process in and of itself.<\/p>\n The second category includes what is perceived to be mistreatment by or the hypocrisy of the Church or Christians. Examples include pastors who have had moral failures and mishandling of church funds. Also, being cheated on a business deal by a church member or judgmental attitudes toward certain people, races, or lifestyles also seem to turn off young adults.<\/p>\n

Is This Enough to Lose One\u2019s Faith?<\/h4>\n \ Faith is a very personal matter. Some people tolerate uncomfortable situations and unanswered questions well. Some do not. It\u2019s not matter of how strong our faith is. It seems to have more to do with our personal ability to reconcile difficult events we experience.<\/p>\n \ My father was raised in poverty. He grew up in the mining communities of Harlan County, Kentucky. Life was hard. His father was an alcoholic, gambler, and bootlegger. He slept in drafty log cabins with snakes crawling above his bed at night. He gathered chunks of coal that had fallen off the trains. Then he carried it down the mountain for twenty-five cents a load. His parents died young. Two of his siblings died, one as a baby, the other with cancer. If there was ever anyone who shouldn\u2019t have come to faith, it was my father. But I\u2019ve never met a person anywhere with a greater trust in God.<\/p>\n \ I have know some folks, on the other hand, who lost their faith because someone didn\u2019t shake their hand at church. Others because they didn\u2019t like the way the church spent the money or the color of the new carpet. For some people, nothing can shake their faith, and for others, anything can.<\/p>\n \ So What is Faith Anyway?<\/h4>\n \ I\u2019ve got lots of definitions of faith. Some are more theologically correct than others, I suppose. Here\u2019s the one that fits our discussion here. \u201cFaith is continuing to believe when there\u2019s absolutely no good reason to.\u201d My father, many times in his life had no good reason to believe except one; he had faith. I won\u2019t bore you my life\u2019s story, but I can summarize it like this. I\u2019ve experienced every single one of those reasons my college students gave for losing faith. Yet, here I am.<\/p>\n \ Is it in my DNA? I don\u2019t think so. Is it because my father modeled real faith so well. Probably so. I got to observe what \u201ccome hell or high water\u201d kind of faith looks like. My parent\u2019s faith was not Sunday morning only faith. It didn\u2019t depend on the weather, or people\u2019s attitudes, or how they felt that day. No, their faith was steadfast, consistent, and it stood the test of time. And it was faith that they held on to with their last breaths.<\/p>\n

So What Does This Mean?<\/h4>\n Real faith isn\u2019t something we turn on or off. If you\u2019re religion cycles on during good times and off during bad, it may just be religion, and not faith. You can\u2019t earn faith. It\u2019s a gift from God<\/a>. Faith isn\u2019t something you inherit. All faith is first-generation faith. Faith isn\u2019t church attendance, good works, or religious activities. Faith is believing God when there\u2019s absolutely no good reason to. If your faith doesn\u2019t pass that test, ask God for the gift of faith. Don\u2019t try to impress Him. He already knows your doubts and fears. Just be honest. Tell Him that you like the kind of faith that perseveres, the kind that doesn\u2019t give up. He loves giving that gift. I believe if you ask for it, He\u2019ll help you find it.<\/p>\n

So is Living the Life of Faith Really Worth It?<\/h4>\n \ You bet it is. Because it\u2019s the only life that will give you hope when there\u2019s no reason to have hope. It will give you joy, peace, patience, and a song in your heart, when there\u2019s not a reason in the world to have them. Oh, it\u2019s worth it, my friend. It\u2019s worth it!<\/p>\n \ \u00a0<\/p>\n \ \u00a0<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" \ Is living a life of faith really worth it? It seems like so much trouble: reading your Bible, praying, attending church, being nice to people\u2026what\u2019s in it for me? This is the sentiment of so many people. And in some ways, you can\u2019t blame people for being burnt out on faith. What\u2019s the Trend? I […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5336,"featured_media":377,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[14,60],"class_list":["post-374","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-forgiveness","tag-joy"],"yoast_head":"\nIs Living a Life of Faith Really Worth It? Frustrated with Faith<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Is living a life of faith really worth it? It seems like so much trouble: reading your Bible, praying, attending church, being nice to people...what's in Faith seems like a lot of trouble sometimes. 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