What is Directional Faith?

Even the smallest decisions in life lead us to one question: will this draw me closer or drive me further from God? It is the key to discipleship, and the path to a closer relationship with Christ.

Directional Faith

As Christians, you might reflect on your faith journey by examining the pivotal moments of your life, but the reality is that the little moments, the small decisions you make daily, can have an impact as well.

When you begin a journey, such as this pilgrimage called “life,” you will spend most of the time looking forward to the destination. Along the way, you might notice certain waypoints along the path - the memorable moments from your journey.

But each step on the journey is important. If you are not paying attention to each step, ensuring that you are staying on the straight and narrow path, you can quickly go off course. A common Chinese proverb states that “a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.” Every step matters, from the first one you take.

That’s where you are right now. As you read this, you are about to take the first step on a pilgrimage to your Creator. You must pay attention to where you are going - you must have directional faith.

The First Principle and Foundation

The idea for directional faith is based on the Spiritual Exercises, written by St. Ignatius of Loyola. It begins with his “First Principle and Foundation,” which reads:

Man is created to praise, reverence, and serve God our Lord, and by this means to save his soul.

The other things on the face of the earth are created for man to help him in attaining the end for which he is created.

Hence, man is to make use of them in as far as they help him in the attainment of his end, and he must rid himself of them in as far as they prove a hindrance to him… Our one desire and choice should be what is more conducive to the end for which we are created.

Simple enough. Well, it is simple enough to understand anyway, but much more difficult to put into practice. My goal with this site is to help you do that. Let’s start by breaking that down.

Our Purpose

We often look for purpose in all the wrong places. For many, we look for purpose in our careers and jobs. But what many find out too late is that it does not bring the happiness or contentment we sought. The same can be said for seeking wealth, power, and popularity.

Ignatius challenges us by saying that we are created for one purpose: our life and relationship with God, which is built on the pillars of praise, reverence, and service. It’s Christianity 101. Few would argue that.

However, we still put a lot of focus on job titles, the size of our bank accounts, and the number of followers we have on social media.

You were not created for any of those things. God created you to have a relationship with Him - no to see how much you could attain in this life. That is not your purpose.

The Purpose of “Stuff”

So why do we have things in our life? Why do we have jobs or careers? Why do we own things, such as houses, cars, and everyday items? Heck, why do we even have relationships with each other? What purpose do the people in our lives serve if they are not our purpose?

In this second phrase, Ignatius gives us the reason: to help us serve our actual purpose of building a relationship with God.

The things in our life are not put here simply for our enjoyment. That’s where we go wrong. We make attaining a certain status our goal. We make owning more objects our goal. We make building certain relationships our goal.

But those things are not our goal. They are simply opportunities to grow closer to God.

Our careers give us an opportunity to share God by the good work we do for others. Our finances give us an opportunity to share and bless those less fortunate. And our relationships give us the opportunity to love others as God loves us.

Everything in your life, and everything not in your life, is simply an opportunity to grow in faith.

Finding Direction Through Opportunity

What does any of this have to do with directional faith? Because every opportunity, every object, and every person who comes into our lives leaves us with a choice: will this bring me closer to God?

You might break things down into good or bad, but it’s not that simple. Not all good things will lead you to God, and not all bad things will pull you away. In fact, it might be the opposite.

Here are some examples:

• A new job might give you more security and allow you to provide better for your family. But long hours might lead to less time with your kids and less energy to serve at your church.

• Saving money might make you a good steward of God’s blessings, or it might turn you into a greedy, selfish person.

• That new boyfriend or girlfriend might give you an opportunity to share God’s love. It also might lead you down a lustful path.

On the flip side:

• Taking a lesser job may not pay as well but will allow you to bond more with your kids.

• Living in poverty may leave you hungry but teach you to depend on God.

• Being single may feel lonely, but it will allow you to focus on building a relationship with Jesus.

So, as you can see, it is not black and white. Every situation is different. Ignatius is challenging you to recognize that difference.

Will your choices today lead you closer or further from God?

The Little Decisions

Of course, I started off with the big decisions, the milestones of life. Yet the little decisions can matter just as much.

As I pointed our earlier, our little decisions lead to the bigger ones. We don’t wake up one day as the CEO of a large company. It takes many smaller, daily decisions to get there. What did it take to get there? Were you ethical, or did you do “whatever it takes” to succeed?

In that new relationship, the little decisions will define it. Are you intent on loving that person by showing them kindness and respect? Or are you consumed with lust and what you get out of it?

The little decisions affect your life because they are the footsteps on your journey. If you take misstep after misstep, you will never make it to your destination. We can say that we are followers of Christ, but our footprints are the proof of whether or not we do.

Ignatius said that “our desire and choice should be what is more conducive to the end for which we are created.” That means making tough choices sometimes. That may mean passing on a job opportunity or ending a toxic relationship. Discern what God is telling you.

Next Steps

Our life is full of decisions, and it’s hard to navigate on our own, which leads to my primary focus - teaching people how to discern God’s will for their lives and apply it daily.

When you look at the Directional Faith logo, it is a street sign with a giant cross on it, and just as a normal street sign would do, it is telling you which direction to turn, and in all aspects of your life, turn to Jesus.

So if you want to join me on this journey, I encourage you to subscribe and get the latest posts in your inbox. Just hit the Subscribe button below. Future articles may be a little shorter (this article ran a little long), though we’ll see about that.

I look forward to going on this pilgrimage together. Peace.