How to have Faith: A Companion Piece to Christ and Positive Thinking
“The capacity for faith springs from the capacity to love; and faith, which has been defined for all time as the ‘substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.’ must be a vigorous and growing emotion if our spirits are to survive.” (Smiley Blanton, Faith is the Answer, p. 229, Revised edition 1967, original 1940) [Hebrews 11:1]
How does one have faith in a world where there is both beauty and ugliness, satisfaction and tribulation, trials and joy, justice and injustice, kindness and cruelty, life and death?
“The art of having faith may be developed through two suggestions if they are faithfully followed: (1) the practice of simple but habitual prayer and devotional meditation; (2) the surrender of your life in an attitude of childlike trust to the will of God.” (Norman Vincent Peale, Faith is the Answer, p. 19)
What does this mean? “Ten minutes spent in Christ’s society every day, aye two minutes, will make the whole day different.” (Ibid, quote of Henry Drummond)
Henry Drummond (August 17, 1851- 1897) was a Scottish evangelist, biologist, and lecturer. He was an advocate of theistic evolution. This view holds that “God acts and creates through the laws of nature. It posits that the concept of God is compatible with the findings of modern science, including evolution.” (“Theistic Evolution,” Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia)
Drummond, a Leo, had the Moon probably in Aries, possibly in Taurus. [Midnight to “nineish” p.m. in Aries]. The key to the nativity seems to be the stellium in Taurus (Pluto 0 d, Saturn 4 d 19,” and Uranus 4 d 21”). The Moon was probably together with Pluto, and that brought Saturn and Uranus into the fold.
Uranus conjunction Pluto is a generational influence. It gives…”the power to rid the world of much evil and create a dynamic, humanitarian, and well-organized society.” (Parker, The Compleat Astrologer, p. 147)
Henry Drummond’s book Natural Law in the Spiritual World made him famous. His interest in lecturing and writing is shown by his Mercury in Virgo and Mars in Gemini.
Drummond never married. With Venus square Saturn that was one possible outcome. Remember hundreds, perhaps thousands, will have that placement on a given day. The natal chart interacts with family and environment.
Christ said, “If you have faith small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.” Matthew: 17-20.
Norman Vincent Peale did not think Christ meant that one could literally move a mountain such as McKinley or Everest. He thought one could move a mountain of difficulty from one’s mind or what the mind had blown up to be a prodigious obstacle.
I’m a bookworm. I was born prematurely, and my eyes were crossed. Fortunately, I had a very capable eye doctor, Dr. Cameron, perhaps the best surgeon on the Pacific Coast, who remedied the situation in 1960. However, I do not have depth perception, [It could be Neptune rising, square the Sun and Uranus, themselves joined] and to my regret my hand/eye coordination is not the best. I wish I had great ability in sports.
Once in P.E. class in high school, we were required to do the standing broad jump. I was at the end of the line and observed others. I thought to myself this doesn’t seem that difficult (a positive thought). When my turn came I was able to go 7 feet. I thought I bet I can do better. I reached 7 and a half. On my final attempt I reasoned if I put my feet fully beneath me so they almost touched my bottom, I could jump even farther. I set a school mark of 8 feet 1 inch. Later when I had to do the same thing to enter a military academy, the atmosphere seemed to me negative, and my best was a paltry 5 feet 6 inches.
It’s my understanding in tennis there’s a saying that athletic ability will only take you so far. The rest is mental.
To keep the mind strong we must feed it positive thoughts. It must be relaxed to develop its full power. By the way, the mustard seed is tiny while the eventual tree is quite large.
Christ knew people were flawed, yet he believed in them anyway. Through his own life, he wanted them to know who and what God was like. Faith is the answer. The Bible is a source of belief in self and spiritual power carried over to the secular one.
Jesus’ greatest commandments were Love God and Love your neighbor. That helps faith blossom.
Brian Hill, blog writer