Faith fullness
How can we live a life full of faith?
Why do we try to do this?
Quakers have a chapter called, ‘Faithful lives’ in Quaker Faith & Practice – our current book of discipline.
The entries are often taken from Testimonies written after someone has died, they are more formally called, ‘Testimony to the Grace of God as shown in the life of….”. Some are written for local meetings as a memorial, others are written with a larger audience in mind and sent up to Yearly Meeting and shared there.
Testimonies rather than Eulogies
“A testimony should radiate the Grace of God as shown in the life of the Friend who has passed from this world. It differs from an obituary account of achievements, yet a few milestones in the life of the deceased will serve to illuminate the spiritual gifts bestowed.”
Our church government would be an empty shell without the living expression of our faith provided by generations of individual Friends. Our custom of writing testimonies to the grace of God as shown in the lives of Friends provides us with a wealth of material showing ordinary Friends living out their faith from day to day. These testimonies show us that, whatever our circumstances, God can be present with us, and they encourage us each to be faithful to our own calling. Our discipline and structures do not exist by themselves. The life of our Society is made up of the lives of its members. The faithfulness of our Society consists in the faithfulness of each and all of us. And none of us can expect ‘the Society’ to be more faithful, more committed, more loving, than we ourselves are prepared to be.
From Shunned to Visionary
Of course, when the Testimonies are read there are those who did astonishing things, affected world history, changed cultural expectations by living astonishing lives. But often those who do such radical and uncomfortable for those around them things, Quakers are now happily claiming people as ‘visionary’ who were living faith full lives, who at the time were written out of the society, shunned, ignored or at least asked to be quiet.
Those lives also make me very aware that my skill set is not in living at the edge of a wilderness, or as I laughingly assured another Quaker
“I’m not the right person to stand in front of the police barricade, be thrown down the steps of St Pauls and arrested…. but I will absolutely get your press releases and newsletters out, and the website updated.”
So I’m always thankful to see those faith filled lives that look more like mine. Doing often small things I am called to do in obedience, trusting that in doing so I am living in faithfulness.
I liked the reminder at the end of this video that sometimes you have to just close your eyes to consequences and step forward to do what you are called to do. No matter your doubts. Living in faithfulness takes work – that’s why it’s talked about and discussed, if it was easy we’d not mention it!
In the book ‘Small Gods’ Terry Pratchett commented
"You can die for your country or your people or your family, but for a god you should live fully and busily, every day of a long life."
I think I have wasted a great deal of my life waiting to be called to some great mission which would change the world. I have looked for important social movements. I have wanted to make a big and important contribution to the causes I believe in. I think I have been too ready to reject the genuine leadings I have been given as being matters of little consequence. It has taken me a long time to learn that obedience means doing what we are called to do even if it seems pointless or unimportant or even silly.
Wendrie Heywood
MBS Founder
