Finding Faith to be an At-Home-Mom

The ancient people of the earth had major insecurity problems. For many of them, their fears made it difficult to believe in an invisible god that would save them from all their troubles, so they clung to their statues of stone, wood, or metal. Those idols gave them the false security of putting their faith in something that was tangible and visible. Yet, no matter how much they worshiped their graven images, those gods in effigy had no power to deliver them.
Are we any different today? How many of us go to work outside of the home because of the
security that a second income gives us? Do we place our faith in a paycheck because we can see and feel it, believing it has the might to rescue us from the difficulties of life or even give us things we desire, and like the ancient people who worshiped idols, put our trust in something that makes us feel safe, yet has no power to save?
Fear is deadly to our faith! When we let fear and worldly voices overwhelm us, faith cannot grow. The Savior taught this throughout His earthly ministry and a great example is in Matthew 14:26-32.
When the disciples were in a boat on the sea of Galilee, they saw Jesus walking towards them
on the water and were frightened, thinking him to be a spirit. Christ calmed their fears and Peter called to the Lord to bid him come unto Him. Christ did so, and Peter left the boat and began walking on the water to meet the Master. The winds, however, began to be very strong and becoming afraid of the wind and waves around him, Peter began to sink, calling out to Jesus to save him. Jesus, immediately reaching out to Peter, caught him and said, “O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?” Peter’s faith sustained him for a little while and he was actually walking on the water, but then fear for the raging elements caused his faith to falter and he sank into the waves of the sea.
Fear can cripple us from following God’s commandments. Fear of not having enough for the
bills can keep us from paying our tithing. Fear of rejection can prevent us from asking a neighbor if they want to hear more about the church. Fear about the lack of security can cause us to continue to work away from our homes and our children. When we realize that fear is the
opposite of faith, it can help us recognize the stumbling blocks when they come.
How can we achieve the kind of faith the Lord asks of us? Alma, gives us a key to tapping
into the source of greater growth for our faith. “But behold, if ye will awake and arouse your
faculties, even to an experiment upon my words, and exercise a particle of faith, yea, even if ye
can no more than desire to believe, let this desire work in you, even until ye believe in a manner
that ye can give place for a portion of my words.” (Alma 32:27) Exercise, Desire, Work. Alma
didn’t casually use these words. Increasing our faith is an actual physical effort! Everyone
knows what an effort it is to stay physically fit. Constant exercise is necessary for our bodies to
stay fit, and so it is with our spiritual health! Our faith cannot grow to deeper levels if we do not
exercise it, constantly work at it, and desire to make a greater commitment to take our Heavenly Father and His Son at their word.