Thought for the Week: Faith, hope and love
Trish Carn reflects on faith, hope and love
Over the past few days the chorus of a song keeps repeating in my brain: ‘Faith, hope and charity, that’s the way to live successfully. How do I know? The Bible tells me so.’
The chorus is from a hymn called ‘The Bible tells me so’. It was sung by Roy Rogers, the singing cowboy, and his wife Dale Evans, who were popular in my early teens in the US.
It has been echoing because I am finding that the three words: faith, hope and charity are becoming a major part of my life. Three months ago I was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. I was aware of the disease as my paternal grandmother and my Dad’s cousin both suffered from it.
I am finding that I must move forward in faith in several ways. The first is the assurance of the medical staff I am seeing that treatments have changed drastically since I was a teenager and that my grandmother was in the last stages of the disease. Second, I have lived my life believing that God has a purpose for me to fulfil and that I have been trying to follow my leadings or ‘nudges’ for many years. The third is faith that my family will support me when necessary.
Hope is also important. I hope that the progression of this disease can be delayed by exercise, good food and medication. I also hope and am working toward living with it for as long as Muhammad Ali’s thirty-four years. Billy Connolly was sent to his doctor by a consultant who saw him walking onto the stage in 2013 and told him to go because the consultant thought he had Parkinson’s. Then, shortly after my diagnosis, another Friend in my Meeting was also told she had Parkinson’s. I was amazed to learn that one in 500 people suffer from this disease.
As to charity, I interpret this in the way the New International Version of the Bible does: ‘And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love’ (I Corinthians 13:13).
Love for the world, for others – looking for that of God in all – is the way I try to live, albeit not always successfully. It may be a very hackneyed chorus but it has stuck with me and reappeared now, seemingly out of nowhere.
However, as a way to live, I can’t find a better set of words to guide me.
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