When I was a kid, I had a recurring nightmare that a loved one in my life was possessed by a demon. Immersed in this dream world, I often thought of Jesus\u2019 words from Matthew 17: \u201cTruly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed,\u201d then \u201cnothing will be impossible for you\u201d (v. 20). This spurred me on to fresh efforts at casting out the demon, but nothing ever worked. In response, I tried conjuring up even more faith from somewhere within myself.<\/p>\n
A similar impulse remained throughout my adolescence and early adulthood. Whenever I came to a spiritual or religious difficulty\u2014whether it was trying to break a sinful habit, discerning God\u2019s will, or growing in intimacy in my relationships\u2014my impulse was the same: If I could just believe harder (whatever that meant, I was never sure), then I\u2019d be able to move whatever mountain lay before me.<\/p>\n
I\u2019ve learned over time that deepening faith is not just a mental exercise. It requires action. This lesson was recently reinforced by Rich Villodas\u2019s The Deeply Formed Life: Five Transformative Values to Root Us in the Way of Jesus, which invites Christians to penetrate further into the mysteries of our faith, the history and traditions of our global church, our relationships with others, and the reality of our own inner lives.<\/p>\n
In the midst of a national pandemic that forces us to cover our faces and mediate our social engagements (including worshiping God) through computer screens, Villodas\u2019s book could not come at a more opportune moment.<\/p>\n
As the lead pastor of New Life Fellowship in Queens for seven years, Villodas guides the reader from experience. He leads a flock that is one of the most multiracial Protestant churches in the United States.<\/p>\n
Read it all<\/a>.<\/p>\n When you hit a spiritual difficulty, do you chastise yourself to "just believe harder"?<\/p>\n Deepening faith is not just a mental exercise. It requires action. <\/p>\n A review of @richvillodas<\/a>'s book: https:\/\/t.co\/CIuSKrdA18<\/a><\/p>\n — Christianity Today (@CTmagazine) October 15, 2020<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n \n