Hand in Hand

You just can’t eat the butter without bread and the cookie without the glass of milk. You can’t wear the left shoe without putting on the right one as well. The pepper is always next to the salt. The sea is next to the sand. The lock has a key and that girl has her make-up. There are always things in life that go together. You can’t separate them. If you do, the other will become dull or pointless. You probably think that it just goes like this when it comes to material things. It’s hard to let go of one or the other. However, there are also things that are inseparable but are not earthly goods. Examples of these are ideas and action, joy and sorrow, values and faith. The former is easy to understand but the latter has a few questions at hand.  Faith is to believe in things that we cannot see but we can feel within our hearts. According to the Bible, faith without action is dead. On the other hand, our actions and decisions are determined by our values.  According to my reliable notes in Religion class, values are the good and beautiful things that we consider important in life. They are guiding stars with each step we take. Growing up, I’ve learned that values aren’t just love, peace, charity, friendship and the like.  Our values can either be good or bad. If our values are bad then that would mean that our decisions are affected negatively as well. Instead of choosing wisely, our actions are directed to evil. If faith and values are connected, what will happen to our faith if our own values are negative?Personally, I have my own set of values. With every step I take, these values tell me what I must do. I value life, friendship and family. The Catholic faith tells me that I should respect and love all of these. I value hard work and honesty. My faith tells me that I should do my best and God will do the rest. I value love and happiness. Faith tells me that loving God and others is the true way to happiness. I can’t always follow all the values I want to apply in my life but I’m trying my best to live out my faith. People cannot say that they have built a strong faith in God when all along their values are distorted. If you value money, fame and all the luxuries in the world, you cannot say that you are a faithful person. A true man of faith knows how to prioritize according to his good values in life. Our values shouldn’t contradict our faith because then you cannot call it faith. I call it belief.   The king has his queen while the bees have their own flowers. The spoon goes with a fork and the popcorn has butter. Our values go hand in hand with our faith. Values without faith are incomplete. Faith without values is blind. Never leave home without one.                                                                                                                                                                                              

~ by erulisse123 on April 4, 2008.