Your future is as bright as your faith

Listen to develop a synodal mentality
October 19, 2021
30th Sunday in OT (B)
October 19, 2021

Your future is as bright as your faith

By Anna Maria Mora

‘Your future is as bright as your faith.’ I came across the quote as I was browsing the Internet. The author is anonymous. However, in light of the mental ill-health issues being reported over the past year and a half, the above quote provided me with meaning.

I agree that your future is as bright as your faith. When I hear discussions in which individuals profess to be full of faith, but are worried and confused about the future, those two ideas do not go together.

This pandemic came upon us without warning. With our freedom curtailed, and being cooped up in a house, with husband, wife, and children for days on end, we complain. We are not coping. Questioning ourselves and our future surely also questions the depth of our faith.

We are creatures of habit. As children, parents kept us on a daily routine, and as we grew up, any time routine was broken, there was confusion, anxiety, helplessness, feelings of being lost and not knowing where to turn.

We created our families and the routine continued. Going to church became routine and even now, although we profess our faith, we complain about what we are missing by not physically attending church.  We are not happy with this virtual Mass that comes to us via the television or Zoom, on our computers.

The home that we occupy after work, after school, after the gym, after the lime, creates an environment in which we’ve become strangers, just passing each other like ships in the night.

Our homes were thrown into some disarray when our leaders had to make decisions about keeping us safe throughout this pandemic. Many protocols and regulations had to be enforced, and we found ourselves facing each other at home daily. At times, we had to be indoors as early as 7 p.m. and then 9 p.m. for the latest.

Almost all workplaces put their employees on a work-from-home schedule and children were also receiving tutoring online. Everyone was at home. This created some turmoil, and as we continue to receive instructions as we go forward, the working from home and the coming of what is termed “blended learning”, is seeping into our consciousness as the way we will be operating in the future.

Now the quotation which headlines this article must be true for you, if you and your family are to manoeuvre these unchartered waters successfully as Trinidad and Tobago moves into the future.

If you are to move forward as a family, here are some questions that you need to answer:

  • Before the pandemic, did you know each one of your children?
  • Did you encourage your children to pray with you every morning as they get up and off the bed?
  • What kind of child is he or she? Introvert, extrovert, talkative, quiet, helpful, friendly? What are his/her likes and dislikes?
  • Do you know the name of your child’s teacher?
  • Who are your children’s friends?
  • Who are your children’s friends’ parents?
  • Do you take an interest in your child’s homework, or do you just sign it blindly, just because you must?
  • Do you take the time to listen to your child when he or she has something to tell you, or are you too busy?

 

These questions must be answered. We must also remember that many miracles were done for families. Mothers, fathers, brothers, and sisters believed and when Jesus was asked to heal the sick, it was the deep faith that He saw, that moved Him to perform these miracles.

Do we bring our families together for prayer? Families will be further tested in the days to come. Plans are being put in place for the reopening of schools. If a family has children of different age groups, then plans will have to worked out to accommodate this.

Different age groups will have different schedules for attending school, and parents who are working will also have their schedules. Working out these schedules that are being put in place will necessitate that we dig deep into our faith in God, to help navigate what is to come.

“Only Faith can guarantee the blessings that we hope for, or prove the existence of realities that are unseen” (Heb 11:1). Here is a living example.

A young couple got married in a faith-filled wedding ceremony showing their community what they hope for, and to prove that their future, yet unseen, would become a reality.

They are a very organised couple and have a deep faith in their future. They were clear about how they were going to raise their children.

This couple has a daughter and from the beginning of her maternity leave, Mummy organised and scheduled baby’s feeding time, sleep time, play time, including interacting with the baby.

When Mummy went back out to work and they had to get a sitter, the sitter had to follow the schedule that was laid out for this baby. As baby got older, there were play dates with other babies and reading time.

Time for school came and Mom would say at 7.30 p.m.: “Time to get ready to go to bed,” and off daughter goes with no resistance.

Now she is six years old, she knows that she must have her homework done by 7.30 p.m. because she has to get ready for bed. Now there is a little sister, and the two of them organise themselves to go to bed by 8 p.m.

When these children were born, their parents knew that their children were blessings and hoped for the reality of organised children who would learn that there is a time and place for everything.

They also ensured that they prayed before they went to sleep and when they got up in the morning, before preparing for school. There is no shouting, rushing around, disorganised activity, or late for school or work issues.

Yes, your future is as bright as your faith if you do believe and pray about your hope for the future. A deep faith and belief in the Creator and creation must be at the foundation of all that you do, and miracles will happen.

 

Taken from a parish newsletter