By Christina Captain, DOM, AP
We all need faith, don’t we?
Faith is one of those super buzzwords that can push buttons for many of us.
For this column, I asked 10 people to tell me the first thing they thought about when I said the word “faith.” Without any other context, every person said religious faith and the skewed way that some fundamentalists use it politically. What about faith in the context of belief and understanding that all is well and it will all work out? In general, my respondents said, “Yeah, ok I have faith in that.” On the whole, it wasn’t a very convincing response.
When it comes to an optimistic worldview about how events will unfold in our lives, what kind of faith are we talking about? In whom or what do we have faith? What does it mean to keep the faith? George Michael had a pretty cool song about it….so did Billy Joel. In George’s case, he was having faith about ending a relationship to wait for something new and better. In Billy’s case he was being nostalgic about his youth and in remembering those times he was “keeping the faith.”
We all need faith, don’t we? Faith that the switch will turn on the light, faith that there will be the right doctor for the problem we have, faith that our kids will grow to be people who make a difference and contribute in the healing of our world, and even faith that the country will be in good hands regardless of which candidate we supported in last month’s election.
My dog Max is one example of how faith shows itself in my life.
I know he will always be happy when I get home, ready to play or just to be with me. He has faith that I will come home, let him out and, of course, feed him. Since he is a dog he does not have the burden of “what ifs.” Instead, he holds fast to what he knows to be true, and that knowing keeps him in love with his life and with me.
My personal experience of faith has been one of trials, tests, and tribulations, and throughout my life I believe my faith has helped me to survive. I have faith in myself as a deliberate creator of my reality, and that faith helps me know that all and everything in my experience is of my creation. That’s also a bummer, right? How could I create the car accident, failed relationships, and other not-so-great contrasts? Sometimes there is a descent into the mindset, “Maybe all that I have faith in is wrong.” “Maybe I should be someone other than who I am.” “Maybe it doesn’t matter anyway since we are all living to die.” “Maybe….”
And then I stop and reset my thinking: “Oh yeah, for a moment I forgot who I am. I forgot that I can do anything. I forgot that I make a difference everyday and I feel awesome about that. I forgot that I am a deliberate creator, and I create my reality. It comes from me and not outside of me. I forgot that I am love, and that it flows through me when I allow it. I forgot, simply that I do have FAITH.”
So, dear reader, find your faith and then live deliberately, without fear, out loud, BIG and in the moment. Ignore the mental chatter of what ifs and register for that next class or half marathon, apply for that job you want, make a move with that special someone.
Just do it and keep the faith.
Christina Captain, DOM, AP, SLP, FSC is a board certified acupuncture physician and the founder of The Family Healing Center. She earned her degree in Acupuncture & Oriental Medicine from the East West College of Natural Medicine, where she is now a senior faculty member and advisory board chairperson. Christina received additional training in acupuncture injection therapy and earned a Masters degree in Speech Language Pathology and Communication Disorders and is an expert Feng Shui practitioner and teacher.