Inspiring Faith

There are many facets of being a woman after Mary’s heart. Mary is the perfect form of a woman. Through her, Jesus came into the world so that we may be saved. She humbles herself to be the handmaid of the Lord and submits to whatever the Lord wills for her. Mary the Queen of heaven was sinless in the face of all the hardships and sorrow she faced, most notably watching her so son die a painful death on the cross.

Another important aspect of Mary and her example is how she inspires the faith of others. At the wedding feast of Cana, she plays an important role in the miracle that Jesus does and she displays her faith. She says to Jesus, “They have no wine” as if to say it’s time and I believe in what you can do. Mary then turns to the servants and tells them to “Do whatever he tells you” (John 2:3-5). These simple statements and her calmness and knowing show her faith in what Jesus will do. She shows Jesus her faith in him and then shares that with servants. Because of her faith, the servants are inspired to be faithful as well. As a result, Jesus does his first miracle and his ministry begins.

Upon reflecting on this miracle and what it reveals about the kind of woman Mary is, I became more aware of the kind of person I am called to be. I won’t say what kind of woman I should be because I think that this example Mary shows is one for all humans. We all should work to have a faith like hers. This faith is one that not only makes us strong and our relationship with the Lord firm and unwavering, but it also inspires others to have the same faith. She witnesses to those around her through her actions in this situation. Sometimes people pay more attention to the things we do than the things we say, so it is important that we show faith in our actions as well as in what we say.  Both of these are things that I have been working on for a while, and I’ll probably have to work on them for all my time on this side of heaven. So know that we’re all running this race together.

A few days ago, I also realized another important thing which can be related back to Mary’s example of faith in this gospel passage. Besides trying to be a woman like Mary who inspires faith, I also saw the fruit of surrounding yourself with others who also inspire faith. I was at a graduate student mixer for the Newman Center on my new campus (I would highly recommend seeking out a campus ministry group because it has always been a place that feeds my soul) and I found myself in conversation with some individuals whose faith could show in how they were living and how they were trying to be. The ways that they were trying to let God lead their lives and the things they sacrificed to let Jesus be their center in the middle of this crazy, busy and distracting life really touched and inspired my heart. It made me want to be even more faithful in the way I live.

I think my experience the other day really brought to life my desire to live like Mary that I got when first reading about the miracle of Jesus turning water into wine in the gospel of John. It was as if God was reminding me how important my faith was to more than just myself. If these people that I had just met could inspire me to be more full of faith and life and to be more on fire for Jesus in less than a 20 minute conversation, then I want to and must try to be that for others as well. It increased my desire to be an inspiration for others by strengthening and living out my faith. It is important that we answer the call to live like Mary in this way in order to be a generation that perpetuates faith through accountability and mutual inspiration.

So maybe you’re thinking, I don’t have anyone to lift me up or inspire my faith and you don’t know where to start to live this way. The very first place to start is to work on your own faith. Let God build you up and be your strength. Let him make your faith firm and sturdy and make it bloom like a beautiful garden. Look to your inside and focus first on creating a life that feels good on the inside. Then, don’t be afraid to share that faith. Don’t keep it hidden like a lamp under a basket (Matthew 5:15). Be open and vulnerable for the sake of our Lord. Let others see your faith. Thus, though the strength of the Lord, you will be for others what you really need. Additionally, God wants you to have the best things, so in addition to working on your own faith, pray that He would surround you with people who are faithful and will feed your soul and inspire your faith. Let God work on your situation and have faith that he’ll do that work in your life and give you what you need. Rest in that faith and one day you’ll wake up and you will have an amazing community that is better than you could have even asked for. (I would also suggest hitting up your campus ministry, Newman center, local church, youth group, or bible study to start meeting people who share your faith as well as a good place to start).

Prayer: Dear Lord, I pray that you would strengthen my faith and help me to become a person who inspires faith in others just like Mary does. I ask that you would bless me with a community of believers that will be a support system in my faith, even if that doesn’t look exactly how I think it should. I trust that you will provide and will give me the fellowship and encouragement I need. Amen