Faith: (in simplest terms) a strong belief or trust in someone or something.
Evergreen: something that remains fresh or interesting. It is enduring and timeless.
What I love about faith is that though some people may only relate it to a religious meaning, it really has no cookie cutter way of being described. It's abstract and sometimes seems silly and yet most people still use it to back up their beliefs and moral compasses that really make up who they are.
What would you say you put your faith in? Is it family? Relationships with friends? Your work? Hobbies and passions? Yourself? Maybe, you put your faith in a lot of things. Or maybe just in the few important ones.
Personally, I put faith in many things, but I'd have to say the biggest is Jesus. So you're probably sitting here thinking, "okay yeah cool, but I still don't really understand how to apply 'Faith is Evergreen' to any of this." Well, let me tell you how I apply it to following Jesus and it might make more sense. It simply means that my faith in Him will always be timeless and fresh. Even at the times when I'm in a rut and I don't feel like it is. What I love is that this term reminds me that there's no right way to go about my personal relationship with Him. It has allowed me to see that finding a way that works for me to build that relationship is what's important and that it's more than okay if it looks different from how someone else are going about it. Some people choose to build that foundation and relationship through bible study, some do it by serving others. Some people just do it by choosing to spread love and by being kind to people.
My favorite person to look to who is living out "Faith is Evergreen" is my mom, Dedra Long. She's probably one of the busiest people I know, which means she often doesn't have a ton of time to always go serve the community or make it to bible study on week nights. So when she does find time to herself, she chooses to build her relationship with Jesus through her creativity. She actually started the hashtag and movement "Faith is Evergreen" by pairing it with her bible journaling, which is insanely beautiful and way too much fun. She is able to create and dive into scripture at the same time! Here's what it looks like:
You can see more of it on her Instagram: @dedralong
Faith in anything, whether it's family, friends, your work ethic or even Jesus causing you to pursue it, it asks that you never stop trying to pursue, look for and trust in it harder. It's what keeps you pushing and ticking. This isn't something that's effortless. Life is distracting and it's easy to let things fall to the waist-side, which is why it's so important to keep reminding yourself that you can always go back to what you believe in.
"Faith is Evergreen" just reminds me that no matter what, my faith will always be there. The same as it was before I got distracted or discouraged. It is unchanged and ready to give me that extra push no matter how I choose to express it.
