A Ramble about Faith

Originally published as a Facebook Note on March 28th, 2009

"There is no spoon." I watched the Matrix the other day. I don't know why, it's been a while since I'd seen it, but I just had this urge to watch it. I remember my philosophy professor telling us in class one time how ecstatic all philosophy professors were that this movie had been made. It's always been one of my favorites.

As I was watching, I got to the scene with the kid in the Oracle's apartment who was bending spoons with his mind. When Neo asked him how he did it, he said to try and remember the truth, that there is no spoon.

This phrase, this concept, keeps repeating itself in my mind. "There is no spoon." Of course what he meant was that in reality, the spoon itself was only a construct of the Matrix's program. He said bending the spoon itself was impossible, but rather it is your own perception of the spoon which bends.

Jesus said that if we had faith the size of a mustard seed, which is ridiculously small, we could tell a mountain to uproot itself, and replant itself in the sea, and it would obey. Of course, attempting to uproot a mountain just by telling it to is impossible. I'm sure many have tried faithfully.

But let's look deeply at that mountain for a minute. It's largely made of of rock and stone. That rock and stone is made up of various elements which have combined chemically to form granite, basalt, sandstone, etc. Those elements in turn are made up of certain combinations of protons, neutrons, and electrons. These sub-atomic particles are themselves, in the case of protons and neutrons, made up of quarks. Quarks, and electrons in turn have been revealed to be energy vibrations of a certain frequency and spin. That energy is of course derived from the only Source of all energy who used the energy of His own Existence, all that truly Exists as such, as the building blocks of all created existence.

Like all else created, the mountain relies on God for its very existence, for its very foundation. It, in reality, is no different than we are. It is only our perception of the mountain which we derive from our senses and experiences which makes it so much bigger, so much stronger, so much more solid and massive than we are.

When God asks us to trust Him, when he asks us to do something by faith, what He's asking us to remember is that there is no spoon. He isn't bound by our senses or perception. Should He choose it, the mountain can cease to exist instantaneously, as all He need do is cause those certain energy vibrations which form the mountain to cease vibrating. As it is all the energy of His own Existence at play, ultimately, it is as simple for Him as me to breathe in or out, or to flex the muscles of my finger.

If this is true, then why doesn't He always move those mountains when we tell them to move? I believe first that it is because we don't ask Him, we tell Him. Never a wise idea. At best it causes a good round of laughter. At worst...

Second, do we have that relationship with Him, do we keep that relationship with Him to where He would? All relationships take work to maintain. All friendships must be renewed periodically, and all marriages must involve a great deal of emotional, psychological, and physical intimacy to stay healthy. This takes action on the part of both parties. Both parties must spend quality time with one another. an old friend might accede to a request based on your past relationship with them even if you haven't seen them for ten years, but if you've repeatedly blown them off for ten years after they've tried to get together with you, how likely are they to be agreeable to it?

Third, think about Him as your Father. My kids ask me for stuff all the time. When we're at Wal-Mart they ask for toys, or drinks, or candy, or shoes, or what not. There are times when I accede to these things because I know they enjoy them and I enjoy watching them enjoy them. There are more times when I don't because I know that if I do, they will get more spoiled and cease to appreciate what they have. When they ask for lunch, or dinner, or just basic every day provision, do I withhold it to make them appreciate it more? No, of course not. They need to eat. They need clothes to wear. They need certain daily provisions, and it's my job as Daddy to see to it that they get them. Then there are times when they ask for something in their own childlike way not understanding all the implications of what they're asking. Then, a lot of those times, I know that they don't have the knowledge base for me to explain all of my reasons for saying "no." And I just have to ask them to trust me on it.

There's been plenty of times like this last thing, where I've prayed for something that seemed perfectly reasonable to me at the time, and would seem to be what He would pray for, and then He doesn't do it. But as the time passes by He has me reason through some of the ramifications of what I was asking. It's not that the request might be bad, it's just that it isn't the best for everyone involved. And sometimes, it really isn't the right time for it.

But when he asks us to trust Him, He's asking us to remember that there is no spoon. When He asks us to walk up to the mountain and tell it to move out of the way, He's asking us to remember that there is no mountain irregardless of what our senses are telling us. There is only Him.

He tells us to get out of the boat and walk on the water. We respond back and say, "what about the hurricane and the fact that water can't support my weight?" His response, "what water? All there truly is, is Me." He tells us to feed five thousand with five loaves of bread and a couple of trout. Are we feeding them with bread and fish? Or are we feeding them with Him?

He is the One who does not move through space and time, but space and time move through Him. He is the One who does not exist in creation but all creation Exists in Him.

It is our perception which must change, not the world around us. Do we perceive rock and stone and sea and sky, or do we perceive being surrounded by Him? In the Matrix, all most anyone can see is what their minds are telling them is real. Such as Cypher who in the end didn't care that the steak wasn't real, as long as his mind told him it tasted good. But then there was Neo who in the end didn't see the walls, the floors, the people, the buildings, all he could see was the Matrix code underlying everything and through this change in his perception, His experience was changed and thus his world was changed completely.

God asks us, by faith, to not see the rock and stone and storms and sea. He asks us to see the Code, Himself, which underlies it all. And by this change in our perception of the world to go forward trusting Him.

Is there a mountain in your life He's asking you to trust Him to move? Is there a sea He asking you to walk through on dry ground? Is there a raging storm He's asking you to get out of the boat and walk on the water with? Remember, there is no spoon.