Now let’s pretend I want to do something so you might like me. I choose to buy you a present for your birthday. I overheard you mention to someone that you wanted a jacket. To make sure I get exactly what you want, I ask you, “What color you like the best?” It may seem obvious then that I would buy you a jacket that is this color. But is anything we do really that simple? I do have knowledge that you want a jacket and the color you say you like best. But can I truly trust that this is the color you like best? Can I believe what you told me? If I know you to be someone who listens well and is honest, then I probably will believe what you said is true. If I know you to be a person that jokes around or doesn’t pay attention to what is being asked or can’t make decisions well or often lies, then although I have knowledge of what you said, I am not sure I can believe that it is true. I might look around and even ask others to get some evidence that what I’ve been told is actually true. In the end, the question for me remains, do I act on what I’ve been told and at this point, what I know to be true, and buy you the jacket? If I believe what you say is true and I am interested enough to have relationship with you, I then act in faith, trusting that if I buy you this jacket, I will please you. If I cannot trust you, then I do not have faith to buy you this jacket and hold back on giving you a gift that could possibly bring us closer together.

This is of course a really simple example, but one that repeats itself over and over in many ways as we attempt to relate to one another. In dealing with another person we often think something like this: I know what you have said, but is it true? And then do I have the faith to act on what I know. Thinking about it like this highlights the fact that KNOWLEDGE, TRUTH and FAITH define ALL of our relationships. This is actually a VERY profound realization... that KNOWLEDGE, TRUTH and FAITH define ALL of our relationships. AND it can even be interesting to recognize that this would be true in the spiritual realm, should we wonder how we might relate to a supernatural being such as the creator/God. In any case, in ALL of life, there is a constant flow of KNOWLEDGE, TRUTH, and FAITH working together to influence what we think, feel and do.