The opposite of faith

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What is the opposite of faith? Normally we think it would be doubt. If faith is about believing something in your mind, then the opposite would be not believing, or doubting.

But the Gospel lesson for Sunday seems to say that the opposite of faith is fear. Peter asks Jesus to command him to walk on the water. Jesus says, "Come."

Then, it says, "Peter got out of the boat, started walking on the water, and came toward Jesus. But when he noticed the strong wind, he became frightened, and beginning to sink, he cried out, "Lord, save me!"

It was Peter's fear that made him sink. As long as he walked in faith, he could do anything. But when he became frightened, he began to sink.

When we have faith in God, we have no fear because we know we're doing God's will. Whatever should happen to us will be of no consequence as long as we're being faithful to God. Faith is trust in God. We trust God to take care of us. And when we trust God, God can use us for his purposes.

The problem is that it's very hard to trust God for all our needs. We want to be in control, and as soon as we're in control, we're trusting ourselves instead of God. Then we fall through the waves of fear.

I would like to live in complete trust, but I always find myself falling back and trying to be in control again. It's not so easy living in faith!