GROW | Where Do I Start?

Author: Dawn Hyde

I heard the most honest question today.

Someone came to my office, curious about how to grow their faith. They asked, “Where do I start?”

This is a hard question to answer when you take into consideration the centuries people have followed Jesus and the pre-scripted ways churches have tried to fit faith as a product you can buy or a process you can move through.

It’s a hard question and yet the answer can be simple. I wanted to stay with the simple. So, I said, 

“Start with Jesus.”

Get to know Jesus by reading the Gospel in scripture. I offered the Gospel according to Mark because it’s such a quick read and offered to read it with them and then meet up to talk about it once they’re done. 

And then, I said, “Oh, and tinker with prayer.”

I lifted up the three prayers Anne Lamott describes in her book, “Help, Thanks, Wow” and invited this person to pray whenever they found themselves in need, or with gratitude or struck with awe. 

Finally, I said, “Find a community of believers.”

We can help you explore your faith. That’s where the church can really help. Meet with a pastor or someone you meet at church. Show up for worship. Listen to the podcast. Join a book study or a home group. Community is important because we only glimpse so much of God by ourselves. When we connect with each other, we find opportunities to help one another, give thanks for something someone does with us, and/or we get to see more “wow” moments in other people’s lives. 

As I gave them these three building blocks to begin with, I realized that they don’t have to be built any one way. Some people build their faith starting with community, others with prayer. All lead to Jesus. Sometimes prayer slips out in spite of ourselves - or at least what we tell the world that we believe (or don’t believe).

With that, they left my office, seemingly ready to build.