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Faith is of three kinds: blind faith, reasoned faith, and clear faith. Blind faith is not recommended. Reasoned faith is confidence gained through sound reasoning. Clear faith is confidence gained through experience.
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 God's Boxes I have in my hands two boxes, Which God gave me to hold. He said, "Put all your sorrows in the black box, And all your joys in the gold." I heeded His words, and in the two boxes, Both my joys and sorrows I stored, But though the gold became heavier each day, The black was as light as before. With curiosity, I opened the black, I wanted to find out why, And I saw, in the base of the box, a hole, Which my sorrows had fallen out by. I showed the hole to God, and mused, "I wonder where my sorrows could be!" He smiled a gentle smile and said, "My child, they're all here with me." I asked God, why He gave me the boxes, Why the gold and the black with the hole? "My child, the gold is for you to count your blessings, The black is for you to let go."
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Faith is a word that is often used in a religious or spiritual context to describe a belief in God, or trust in the universe we live in. There are many ways to approach the concept of faith. Many people who do not regard themselves as religious understand the meaning of faith in their own way, and take comfort in some form of spirituality. Certainly it has been well established that people who have faith in something larger than themselves tend to deal with life's stresses better than those who don't. Let us define faith very broadly, thinking of it as confidence in one's own beliefs and values and in the world at large. This basic faith in the goodness of humankind is critically important in order to be able to face life with optimism and to trust others.
We want our children to have a basic trust in themselves and in others. We hope they will have positive expectations of other people, yet recognize when the behavior of others is acceptable. We also hope they will be dependable in their relationships and live up to their promises
An adventure, a going forward--a confident search for a rewarding life. - Karl Menninger
He was born in Bethlehem, Israel of humble Jewish parents, his father a carpenter and his mother a peasant teenager. Jesus grew up in relative obscurity learning his father's trade. He entered the public eye when he appeared at the River Jordan where John the Baptist was proclaiming the coming of the Messiah and baptizing people in the river as a symbol of hope and new beginnings. John recognized Jesus as this new religious leader and baptized him. Jesus soon after began a three year period of teaching and healing around Galilee. He chose twelve men to travel with him, and rather than teach in the synagogues he preferred hillsides and river banks where the poor people could gather around him. Quoting from the Jewish law and prophets, he gave an interpretation that lifted up a new commandment of love. He taught with stories and parables and unintentionally challenged the religious authorities. He was accused of disturbing the peace, brought before Jewish and Roman tribunals and executed by crucifixion. His followers stayed together, forming a Jewish sect that became Christianity.
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CHRISTIANITY "Be not afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of a
great joy..." - Bible, Luke 2:10 "Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy." - Bible,
Exodus 20:8 "And I heard the voice of the Lord saying, 'Whom shall
I send and who will go...for us?' Then I said, 'Here I am,
send me.'" - Bible, Isaiah 6:8 THE PRECIOUS PRAYER During Yom Kippur, Rabbi Isaac Luria was praying in a
synagogue when an angel came and told him about a man whose
words, when he prayed, reached the highest of heavens. The
angel told him the name of the man and where he lived. When
Yom Kippur was over, the rabbi made haste to find this
man. He searched the city for the man. First he went to the
House of Study, then to the market, where he asked for
information on the man with that name. He was told that the
man lived in the mountains and was a poor farmer. The rabbi set out for the mountains to find the farmer
and was surprised when he found him that his house was just
a poor hut. He was greeted by the farmer and invited into
the hut. The rabbi asked him to tell him about his prayers.
Surprised by the question, the man told the rabbi that he
could not say prayers because he did not know how to read
although he knew his alphabet. Puzzled by this response, the rabbi asked the man what
he did on Yom Kippur. The man replied that he had gone to
the synagogue and had seen everyone praying. He felt
heartbroken, so he recited the alphabet and asked that God
take the letters and form them into a prayer which would
rise like the scent of honeysuckle, for that was the
sweetest scent he knew. The farmer said that he repeated
this plea with all his strength over and over. The rabbi understood what secret God had sent him to
learn: that man sees only what is before his eyes, but God
sees what is in the heart, which is what made the prayers of
the farmer so precious.
Once again this year we will be writing a song of the month to go along with our value of the month. We will be starting with the fifth grade and working our way down to the first grade.DECEMBER - FAITH
The song of the month for November was written by the fourth graders in Room 15. It is sung to the melody of DECK THE HALLS.
We have faith and we should show it. FAITH...
The way we live should help you know it. FAITH...
By helping people, big and small, FAITH...
Spread your faith to one and all. FAITH...
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