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“Bootleg Faith”
Key
Verse:
“Examine yourselves to
see if your faith is genuine. Test yourselves. Surely you know that Jesus
Christ is among you; if not, you have failed the test of genuine faith.” 2 Corinthians 13:5 (NLT)
Devotion:
A
skeleton hangs in my family history closet. It’s very quiet. No one brings the
skeleton to our family gatherings. It seldom rattles, but when it does, we all
look at each other appalled. How can our
family have a history of bootlegging?
To
my shock and dismay, it’s true. My great-grandfather and grandpa bootlegged
alcohol during the Prohibition of the 1920’s. The original term, bootleg, comes from the attempt to
conceal something, usually whiskey, in a flask down the inside of a high-top
boot. However, during the Prohibition, the word “bootleg” was soon coined to mean brewing drink that
was only a copy of the real thing—whiskey.
So,
when the government prohibited the making or selling of any type of alcohol, my
forefathers saw opportunity. They contrived a small distillery in a basement
and sold the liquid gold at exorbitant prices. The folk who remember the brew
said it smelled like oil and tasted like acid. However, it was in high demand.
So, the “family wealth” expanded from the illegal activity of making something
that produced the desired effect-- drunkenness--but no one actually considered
the concoction the “real stuff.” The bootlegged moonshine made everyone
happy—my ancestors and the city drunks.
Sometimes
our faith is bootlegged. We try to fake the appearance of faith in others. We
tuck their “faith” inside our spirit, so we can be “spiritual.” Or, like my
“family wealth,” perhaps our faith is passed down to us. We assume it’s real.
“Family faith” feels comfortable, like a well-worn leather boot. We participate
in all sorts of rituals, celebrations, and prayers that we don’t understand or
even care about. Bootlegged faith is never authentic growing faith. It’s fake
faith.
I
want my faith to be genuine and not a hand-me-down, don’t you? Let’s pledge today to grow our own faith by
reading God’s Word, praying and attending a Bible based church. Let’s show our communities, not a bootleg
faith, but an authentic faith that glorifies God.
Prayer:
Dear Lord, help me
not to “bootleg” my faith from others.
Grow authentic faith within me. Grant me the privilege of glorifying You
through my faith. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Application
steps:
Read Acts 2:41-42. List the spiritual disciplines of
the early followers of Christ. Choose
one to practice in your own life. Ask
God to increase your personal faith as you seek a closer relationship with Him.
Reflections:
Do
I try to falsely imitate someone else’s faith?
How
can I develop a strong faith of my own?
Power
verses:
Acts 2:41-42, “So then, those who had
received his word were baptized; and that day there were added about three
thousand souls. They were continually devoting themselves to the apostles'
teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.” (NASB)
Romans 10:17, “Consequently, faith comes from
hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ.” (NIV)
1 Peter 1:6-7, “In this you greatly rejoice,
though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of
trials. These have come so that your faith--of greater worth than gold, which
perishes even though refined by fire--may be proved genuine and may result in
praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.” (NIV)
Excerpt from Birds in My Mustard
Tree by Susanne Scheppmann
© 2008 by Susanne Scheppmann. All rights reserved.
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