There are a whole lot of people out there prepared to tell you faith matters because of sin or humanity’s fallen nature or some popular idea of the devil. But all of that is just opinion and theology, and none of that really explains why faith matters.

So why do we do this? Why do I do this? Because faith matters.

Faith matters because when you are in the darkest corner of your life, the only one to keep you company is God, however you perceive God.

And building faith is just like building skills in a sport or with a musical instrument, but instead of drills or scales, your practice is prayer and meditation. Prayer is when you talk to God. Meditation is when you can hear God talk to you.

The thing is, when life is good, money is easy and your health is reliable, you really don’t need faith. It’s nice to have and socializing with people who think the same way you do is really enjoyable, but faith is not for the times when everything in your life works.

Faith is for the hard times when you are all alone, don’t know how you will pay for your life, are sick and depleted, and feel like everything is going wrong.

The thing is… in order to have faith in the hard times you have to PRACTICE faith in the good times. Even if you don’t feel it, pray. Spend time every day meditating and asking God for guidance. Read scripture. Ask any question that pops into your mind. Don’t listen to anyone who tells you your intelligence has to be left at the door. Challenge folks. But above all pray.

Then when it is the worst time of your life – and this will happen to all of us – you have all the tools you need to ask God to stay with you and help you find your way to the light.