“Can that wall come down?”
“I don’t know, is it load-bearing?”
Whether you are remodeling a church classroom or a home kitchen, you have to watch out for the load-bearing walls. They hold up the house! They look just like the other walls, but a good architect or contractor can spot the load-bearing walls. Recently, though, I heard a theologian on a podcast mention “load-bearing faith.” And that got me pondering.
Sometimes we are unsure if the seams will hold when pain bears down on us. We call ourselves Christians, but we feel fragile under the pressures. As wars rage and society shifts, we wonder if our faith is actually load-bearing. Many are worried about the potentially catastrophic outcomes of AI if left unchecked. Others wrestle with shocking diagnoses. Some of us are just trying to keep up with the daily rigor of parenting and career. Doubt creeps in. We wonder if the whole house may collapse.
Sometimes we practice our faith in flimsy ways, but when we dive into the challenges with intellectual honesty, the faith grows stronger. And when we engage in serving others, our faith grows stronger. But I think the most profound aspect of a load-bearing faith is community. When a friend from church drives 3 hours to attend your mother’s funeral, or when a church member delivers a hot meal after you have a baby, or when a pastor at the church prays with you before you have surgery, you realize that the load is not yours to bear alone.
Grateful for you,
Carla
