2. God Trusting

3. Trusting God Ideas about “ faith ” “ Where is your faith? ” “ Never before have I seen faith like this! “ If you have faith like a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, get up and move! ”

4. Trusting God Ideas about “ faith ” Faith is not an ability to be exercised, but an attitude to to be learned, received and practised. When Jesus spoke with people who were seeking Him, he encouraged faith and commended faith – but never commanded it. For the seeker, we do “ choose ” faith … but not simply as an act of will.

5. Trusting God Ideas about “ faith ” ( For the man or woman who has already chosen to follow Jesus, there does then come an exercise of will where we choose to act based on what we have already learned about trusting Jesus, rather than other philosophies or belief systems)

6. Trusting God “ Just have faith ” “ All you have to do is believe ” “ Your faith isn ’ t strong enough ” What (daft) people sometimes say to those seeking faith: Ideas about “ faith ”

7. Trusting God “Faith – believing something you know isn’t true” Ideas about “ faith ” The cynic ’ s definition:

8. Trusting God The constipation concept … … strain hard enough, you ’ ll produce something! Ideas about “ faith ”

9. Trusting God “ Faith ” or “ believing ” are simply trusting God this is much more than an intellectual judgement! Ideas about “ faith ”

10. Trusting God Trust is inevitably based on our experience … Faith = “ putting our whole weight upon ” Ideas about “ faith ”

11. Trusting God “ Believing ” that abseiling is safe is different at the top of the tower! Ideas about “ faith ”

12. Trusting God “ Believing ” that parasailing is safe is different in the air! Ideas about “ faith ”

13. Trusting God “ ‘Faith’ is spelled ‘R-I-S-K’ “If you never do it, you never get to see it” John Wimber Faith = Believing = Trust = Risk Trusting means risking

14. Trusting God Trusting means risking betrayal? broken confidence? vulnerable to pain what will people think? can I take this risk? Some people leap into relationships … others take their time!

15. Trusting God Evaluating the risk is this credible? is this coherent? Rational evaluation Note: Bible documents are faith documents – they were not written as science or history! does it work for other people? does it answer a need that I have?

16. Trusting God Evaluating the risk how do I feel? why do I feel like that? (e.g. peace, sorrow, fear, security, anger, isolation) what other explanations could there be for these feelings? Experiential evaluation In evolutionary terms, why should I enjoy a sunset or be touched by music?

17. Trusting God Experimental trusting  intellectually honest experimental prayer  intellectually honest experimental bible reading  experimentally being prayed for (at a distance, or “hands on”!)

18. Trusting God The language of intimate trust “This is a good woman, so I will pursue a formal legal contract for her to be my mate”

19. Trusting God The language of intimate trust “My love is like a red, red rose” “ Stretching ” language – an attempt to describe experience

20. Trusting God The language of intimate trust God our Father The Son of God The Trinity “ Stretching ” language – an attempt to describe experience Born again

21. Trusting God The language of intimate trust Jean- Francois Gravelet 1824-1897 (Blondini) at Niagara Falls