MY JOURNEY TO FAITH- Part 1

My husband has his journey to share so, he will write part 2.

I’ve taken a bit of a break from blogging. There’s been a lot going on in our lives, and I’ve been thankful that Mike has stepped up to take over while I had a break. During my hiatus, not only have there been monumental changes for our family but there has been a monumental

shift for me as well.

At the end of last August, I wrote a blog called Religion. At that time, I commented on how Mike and I came from different religious backgrounds. I was raised without faith while Mike was raised in a Christian Reformed home. Last August, I would have said I didn’t see our faith path changing, but I couldn’t have been more wrong.

Over the last eight months, I’ve watched my husband go through a transformational shift. The pursuit of his dreams escalated, but I could tell something was missing. Faith in God had previously been such a large part of his life but not a huge part of his heart. I could see him struggling to find his path forward, and faith kept showing up for him.

Over the last eight months, I too have been on a journey. Outside influences, and the direction of the world today have opened my eyes to the need to open my heart up to God.

It wasn’t long ago that Mike and I were out for dinner. I told him I thought we needed faith in our marriage and our family. Not because anything is wrong, but because I have felt a calling for this. With Mike’s past, I told him I expected him to lead us forward from here.

When I was younger I explored the idea of different faiths but reflecting now, I didn’t have any understanding of God, Jesus or the Holy Spirit. I had never read the Bible other than skimming through a couple of verses. But I watched my father pass without faith in his life. I knew at some point, that I would seek faith in mine.

The biggest struggle I’ve had so far has been understanding that finding faith or discovering a different path is ok. Previously I was one to ridicule, but now I understand the ignorance behind my judgment.

When you decide to accept God into your heart, what then? I knew I had to start at the beginning. I never read Bible stories as a child so I bought myself the book Read and Share Bible- 200 best-loved Bible stories (there’s even a movie on Crave- I haven’t watched it yet, but I will). That gave me a quick synapse, and I’ve been diving deeper into my faith since.

A year ago, there wasn’t a Bible in our house, and now we have 5.

I’ve had a lot of questions, and my journey has only just begun. But we’ve found a church that we like and I’ll be there on Sunday with whichever children care to join as sadly, Mike has to work.

I’m excited about where our faith takes us…to be continued.

Shannon, The Herdmother