3

Faith Arising explores the process that helped me create context for my faith story. As you read, I hope you find parts of my journey to which you can relate. I don't expect everything that has worked for me to be a solution for you, although you may find tools, ideas, and "aha moments" for your own faith story. I invite you to critically examine key moments in your life where you felt lost, heartbroken, inspired, challenged, courageous, overwhelmed, and at peace.

I have had a life filled with joyous experiences and am eternally grateful for all the incredible blessings. I have had communities come along beside me in moments of despair. I would be remiss if I didn't mention my African brothers in Christ, my brothers-in-arms, my family, and those who have adopted me into their family as if I were their own.

In this book, however, I explore the limiting beliefs that held me back, the hardships I faced, and the moments of shame. I am ultimately responsible for getting up and taking ownership of who I am and who I am to become; to find a way to go beyond the broken moments and arise.

This story is for everyone! Maybe you can relate to me directly regarding the growth stages and faith development. Perhaps you see your son, daughter, brother, sister, employee, colleague, or friend. I invite you to investigate your faith with me and ask some of the questions I considered to strengthen my resolve. Questions like, How do I define my faith? What gave me resilience when I fell apart, became discouraged, or suffered? How did I navigate difficult relationships? What mechanism inside of me caused me to arise?

The ideas shared in Faith Arising are based on Christian teachings. I am unapologetically Christian, although I considered deeply how to discuss and provide a field manual on faith without alienating those who may be developing their understanding and how they align themselves to religious ideas. I am not attempting to create an apologetic on Christian thought. Instead, I hope you can consider the teachings here more as suggestions and ideas of what has worked well for me. It's okay to agree with me, disagree with me, and wrestle with ideas. The questioning of faith is where faith begins, and I am confident the resulting growth will be valuable.