This is a series on values that I learned growing up which I still keep to this day. This series is six blogs long. We are on the last one, value #6: KEEP THE FAITH. (In case you’re interested, #1 was INTEGRITY, #2 was DOING CHORES, #3 was FINISH WHAT YOU START, #4 was THE GOLDEN RULE, and #5: STRIVE FOR EXCELLENCE. You can read these in the Recent Posts section.)
Yesterday, when we were driving to Napa for a family escapade, Goodness of God, a song written by Bethel Music and Jenn Johnson, was playing. This version of the song had a very contemplative style to it which accentuated the well-written lyrics:
I love You, Lord For Your mercy never fails me All my days, I've been held in Your hands From the moment that I wake up Until I lay my head Oh, I will sing of the goodness of God And all my life You have been faithful And all my life You have been so, so good With every breath that I am able Oh, I will sing of the goodness of God I love Your voice You have led me through the fire In the darkest night You are close like no other I've known You as a Father I've known You as a Friend And I have lived in the goodness of God (yeah) And all my life You have been faithful (oh) And all my life You have been so, so good With every breath that I am able Oh, I will sing of the goodness of God (yeah) 'Cause Your goodness is running after It's running after me Your goodness is running after It's running after me With my life laid down I'm surrendered now I give You everything 'Cause Your goodness is running after It's running after me (oh-oh)
As I listened to the song, and thought about these words–“For Your mercy never fails me. All my days, I’ve been held in Your hand…. And all my life You have been faithful! And all my life You have been so, so good!”–I started tearing up. I recalled the many times in my life when I was discouraged–at times angry at my circumstances and life’s unfairness! These were times when I was so tired to take the next step; I just wanted to give up! Yet in the midst of these bleak times, there was always a glimmer of hope, a ray of light, that offered encouragement. This came in either a song like Goodness of God or Find us Faithful, an email or phone call from a family member or a dear friend, or simply something I came across my path (a billboard sign or a picturesque sunset)!
This last value–KEEP THE FAITH–was something I picked up from my parents and grandparents. Coming from a family of faith, I saw how my parents and grandparents lived out their own faith journey and dealt with life’s difficulties. It was through them that I learned the following principles about FAITH:
- Fortitude — Collins Dictionary states: “If you say that someone has shown fortitude, you admire them for being brave, calm, and uncomplaining when they have experienced something unpleasant or painful.” I saw this at play as my parents went through the ups and downs of running the family business, in how they dealt with the financial obligations that our family faced, in their efforts to restore strained relationships, or their diplomatically overcoming open opposition to their leadership in church and civic organizations.
- Accountability — Dictionary.com has this definition: “Accountability is the obligation to explain, justify, and take responsibility for one’s actions. Accountability is the state of being accountable, meaning responsible for something or obligated to answer to someone, such as a person with more authority, like a boss.” In my family, there was always an accounting for our actions as children. As mentioned in the blogs for The Golden Rule and Doing Chores, our parents had expectations on how we were to conduct ourselves in public, and communicated the ramifications for actions that didn’t align with these expectations. We were expected to do our best in school and not be truants. We were assigned tasks to do at home and in the family business, and were expected to follow through with these. There was no escaping accountability, as this was an important value in our family.
- Integrity — we talked about this in the first blog on childhood values. It means doing the right thing at the right time, and being dependable at all times. My grandmother, Umnui, often reminded me of how Evangelist Billy Graham maintained a clean reputation and was a man above reproach. He did this until his death in 2018. “He was listed by Gallup as one of the “Ten Most Admired Men” 61 times—including 55 consecutive years…,” his official obituary states. No wonder my grandmother considered Billy Graham as a man of integrity!
- Temperance — Merriam-Webster defines this as “moderation in action, thought, or feeling.” I remember my dad specifically telling me not to allow my emotions to control me; that I needed self-control. He said if I didn’t control these, they’d bring me ruin. Chinese philosopher Lao Tzu had this to say: “Knowing others is intelligence; knowing yourself is true wisdom. Mastering others is strength; mastering yourself is true power.”
- Humility — YourDictionary proffers this definition: “Humility is the quality of being humble and means putting the needs of another person before your own, and thinking of others before yourself. It also means not drawing attention to yourself, and it can mean acknowledging that you are not always right.” My parents taught me to always put others first, especially since I was the eldest in my family, and the oldest boy in both sides of the Sardual and Funda families. Of course, there were countless times that I was selfish and only looked out for my interests. But when my dad learned of it, I would be disciplined accordingly.
Faith, dictionary.cambridge.org suggests, is “great trust or confidence in something or someone”. The Bible, in Hebrews 11:1 (The Living Bible Translation) says this: “What is faith? It is the confident assurance that something we want is going to happen. It is the certainty that what we hope for is waiting for us, even though we cannot see it up ahead.”
As I conclude this series on my childhood values, I want to encourage you to remain strong, steadfast, and to stay the course, as you continue this journey called life. As that “simple reminder” at the start of this blog states: “The most amazing things in life tend to happen right at the moment you’re about to give up hope.” So don’t give up! Keep the faith! And journey on, fellow traveler!