“I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life.” 1 John 5:13

I’ve been regularly going to a place where I had the chance to meet 3 teenage tough guys. I say ‘tough guys’ because they are smart, grounded, inquisitive, athletic and, soon to be, BRAVE! I say ‘BRAVE’ because soon, they will put all those other qualities to the test when they step out of the comfort of their parents homes and into a world of their own. I wanted to test their readiness.

I already know they are not followers of Jesus Christ. They already know that I am. Which presents an interesting challenge! How can I present ‘The Gospel’ to VERY smart young men without turning them off or scaring them away? We have a camaraderie already, so when I saw them yesterday, I prayed for some guidance since, I ALSO share camaraderie with Jesus Christ…the Lord of the Universe! An idea came into my mind!

Telling them I was teaching a Bible Study and would LOVE their help, I asked them THEIR opinion of the difference between ‘BELIEF’ and ‘FAITH.’ We held discussion, clarification and interaction and, as a group, came up with the following statement. ‘Belief’ is something you ‘think’ to be true…’faith’ is something you ‘know’ to be!

I believe it was Mark Twain who said, “It ain’t what you don’t know that gets you into trouble. It’s what you know for sure that just ain’t so.” I believe this quote to be true! But after doing some research, I have faith that Twain really didn’t coin the phrase. No one REALLY knows where it originated and we can’t really find out. But today’s Bible verse goes beyond BELIEF to provide solid FAITH about a subject many would like to know. Our eternal destiny.

Standing on the edge of a skyscraper would take a LOT of faith AND belief in the subject of gravity. KNOWING what would happen if I fell should make me VERY careful about what I BELIEVE in my ability to stand there without doing so. Believing I could ‘fly’ would not change the principle of gravity! So I’d best be VERY careful in my next step.

I am looking forward to our next meeting and discussion. When it comes to these tough guys, I am in for the long haul. I know they’re thinking about what we discussed and won’t be ‘put off’ because of it when we next meet. God’s interest, and therefore MY interest, is to help them discover TRUE FAITH in the only One who can truly help them when they fall! Because, having been fallen myself…I KNOW!

Please pray for them and me.  It can get a little scare up here!  knowhadimean?