Sinopsis :

Faith is a word that is used to describe a person’s unshakeable belief in something without the need of proof. In Christianity, that faith is a complete trust in God, in all He does and in all that He promises. Faith in its true religious context is the response to the loving invitation of God, the gift of God that gives people the power, the ability to say “I Believe”. Faith is a free gift from God that enables us to accept Him completely and to hand our lives in complete confidence and trust over to God and let His will be done in our lives. By being faithful to God we come to learn what we can expect from God in return for knowing and giving him our love; that God will be there as our helper and guide, that he will be with us always and of God’s promise of mercy, salvation and eternal life.  As we journey through life we can deepen our faith, our faith grows stronger as we begin to put our complete trust in God and that may mean having to change how we live our lives and how we think. An awareness of faith may come about over a long period of time or for some it may come in a sudden and dramatic way as was the conversion and new found faith that captured the heart of St. Paul on the road to Damascus.

Consider an invitation. We know what the word “invitation” means, but what does an invitation do or cause us to do. Sometimes we are happy and joyous especially if we receive an invitation to a wedding, treated to a fancy dinner in a restaurant or if one is very fortunate, a holiday. But there are some invitations that can make us panicky or anxious such as those to go to a social function where we don’t know anyone or for a medical appointment.

But what an invitation does do is to ask us and make us respond; and when that invitation is a call from God, faith and a lifetime of ongoing conversion is that response.

Why do you think Jesus called “fishermen” to faith as his first followers?

Finding fish is a special art. So how about finding people! Fishing requires many facets: patience, skill, discernment, common sense, persistence and quietness and just like the early disciples we also will have some of these similar characteristics.

We may sometimes think that we are living in a faithless society and get disheartened but remember that throughout all history there have and always will be people of faith who will inspire others. These may be the more familiar names of the Old Testament: Moses, Noah, Job or from the Gospels, great saints such as Peter and Paul or John or later saints like Francis and Clare  in Assisi. The last (20th) century has given us a wealth of holy people from St. Teresa of Calcutta to St. John Paul II. But stop for a moment and think closer to home. Who introduced you to faith? That person may be a parent, grandparent, friend or maybe you are still searching on your own.

The intention of this book is to help anyone to live the mystery by revealing the faith in a simple and uncomplicated way. It can be used for those enquiring about the catholic faith or cradle catholics who came to faith many years ago and these chapters may bring to life new or forgotten information or rekindle a spark that may lead you to inspire others. Remember life did not end at Easter for Jesus’ Apostles, it was just the beginning of their new lifelong journey which took them to many places doing many things, just as our journey is ever moving on and we are still learning and showing what we believe in what we do and how we behave. It is very encouraging that God never leaves us and He is there if we need His help just as Moses found out when he questioned God on how he was to carry out all the things that God asked of him, God’s reply to Moses was simply “I shall be with you”

Deskripsi Buku :

Author: John Paul Kirkham

Tahun : 2014