Faith, God requires Complete/Absolute Faith in Him

I put my finger on what bothers me about Ayn Rand’s writings in Atlas Shrugged…not that it makes it bad to read, but it can blur one’s vision if not careful. 

It is the absence of faith that really bothers me.

God had Abraham sacrifice his son when it didn’t make sense to Abraham how he could be the father of many nations if he were to sacrifice Isaac.

Joseph was called to sacrifice what he thought was virtue by practicing plural marriage.

Nephi was called to sacrifice the commandment of not killing when he was called to kill Laban.

It is the principle of faith in God over our own knowledge or wisdom. We have to learn the language of the Spirit and follow God’s command that may be, in our own estimation/calculation, to completely contradict everything we’ve held onto firmly in the past.

When you take faith in God out of the picture, it completely pulls the ground out from underneath the principle to stand on. It distorts the truth. I felt like her foundational principle was that everything could be explained and I feel like that can be dangerous. It can destroy faith. God would lead us to eventually be able to say, “I know not, save the Lord commanded me,” Moses 5:6. Nephi saying, “I know that he loveth his children; nevertheless, I do not know the meaning of all things,” 1 Nephi 11:17. I’ll build an ark even though it’s dry. And I’ll fill it with animals and open myself up to more criticism. I’m leaving Jerusalem because of a vision I’ve had that it will be destroyed. I’m going to build a boat and leave Bountiful. I’m going to build a barge and I’m going to light it with a stone through Christ touching that stone. I will look at a serpent on a stick and be healed.

All these things we do, and in the action of faith we see the salvation of God.

Pulling this into the workplace…if I put in 2 more quotes a day and stay 15 more minutes, then that will be 40 extra quotes per month. That will signify that I’m doing all in my power to place myself in a position to earn the income I desire.

Or is it better to say, “I will work my tail off while I’m here, work hard in my family, church, and civic responsibilities too and then trust that Heavenly Father will provide.” I’m not saying I shouldn’t get as many quotes out as possible, but I am saying there will always be more I can do at the office but I am choosing to spend my time differently, still with faith, but with my faith in God, not in the arm of the flesh.  

This can be the same with spiritual things too. Faith in a less worried way. “…be still, and know that I am God” Doct & Cov. 101:16.