The Audacity of Faith
The Relevance of Faith to SuccessBy Emma S. EtukiUniverse, Inc.
Copyright © 2010 Emma S. Etuk, PhD
All right reserved.ISBN: 978-1-4401-8608-0Contents
Acknowledgments.......................................xiii1. Introduction.......................................12. What Is Audacity?..................................43. What Is Faith?.....................................74. The Secret of Faith................................125. Incorporation of Hope in Faith.....................166. Obama's "Audacity of Hope".........................217. Relevance of Faith to Success......................248. You've Got to Succeed..............................31Notes.................................................35Selected Bibliography.................................41About the Author......................................49Index.................................................51
Chapter One
Introduction
The word audacity has been recently popularized by the U.S. president, Barack Obama, in his 2006 best-selling book, The Audacity of Hope. The genesis of Obama's book was the keynote address he presented at the 2004 Democratic National Convention (DNC) in Boston, Massachusetts. The address brought Obama national attention.
We now have many writers on the topic of audacity. The Nigerian media alone provided not less than six such writers. "The Audacity of Dreams," an article that appeared in a Nigerian newspaper, is the story of Cosmas Maduka, a Nigerian business guru who wanted to own a company like Leventis Group. Maduka wrote: "If you do not believe that there is a way if you have the will, ask Americans to tell you about a man called Obama." On January 20 2009, Obama was inaugurated as the 44th president of the United States, the first black to be elected president in the United States.
A sermon by Felix Meduoye titled "The Audacity of Faith" points to the faith exemplified by three ancient Hebrew young men in captivity. The young men were known as Shadrach, Meschach, and Abednego. Their story is found in the Bible (Daniel 3:17-18).
Meduoye also examined the case of another slave called Daniel, who rose from slavery to power. He also spoke about a woman with an issue of blood who was healed by the audacity of her faith (Matthew 9:20). According to Meduoye, the historical King David rose from grass to greatness by the audacity of his faith.
In yet another article titled "Audacity of Corruption: U.S. vs. Nigeria," a journalist named Minabere Ibelema made the observation that, despite the differences in size and longevity between the United States and Nigeria, the "audacity of corruption" persists in both countries.
In the United States, three persons-a governor, a mayor, and a senator-were indicted on charges of alleged corruption. In Nigeria, however, corruption is typically characterized by kleptocracy, which is the stealing of billions in government money, and it is "pervasive." Rarely do the culprits in Nigeria get convicted or imprisoned. So, Ibelema concluded that the campaign against corruption in Nigeria could only ameliorate the issue, not obliterate it.
In one article entitled "Audacity of Hope: Can It Happen Here?" four Nigerian journalists offered the opinions from a national survey that they had conducted. They had interviewed some "notable Nigerians" on the subject of power change. The interviewees included state governors and lawmakers.
The survey revealed, "something was fundamentally wrong with most African countries." That something is the inability of their governments to hand over power to the next government, peacefully. Cynicism is rampant because of this lack of peaceful change. To use the words of ex-president Olusegun Obasanjo, in Africa, politics is a "do-or-die" business.
In her article titled, "Nigeria: 'The Audacity of Hope,'" Karen C. Aboiralor provides an upbeat and positive assessment of the Nigerian situation; she admits that she is an optimist. After painting a gloomy picture of Nigeria, Aboiralor writes that Obama won his election in the United States because of his qualities of hard work, diligence, dedication to duty, careful planning, and optimism. In her words: "Obama worked for his success." This is the lesson that Abioralor wants her fellow Nigerians to learn from the United States. But she also believes that the Nigerian condition may get worse before things begin to get better.
Aboiralor concluded her article by stating that "it is clearly in the interest of the ruling elite to govern better or they themselves will be consumed by the rising anger of the impoverished populace." On December 4, 2008, exactly one month after the election of Obama, this writer spoke at the offices of Business Day Nigeria, a newspaper in Lagos. The subject of the speech was "The Audacity of Faith, or the Relevance of Faith to Success." He was invited by Frank Aigbogun, the newspaper's CEO, to offer a motivational address to the workers of the company.
The address was later published. Aboiralor's article and the address became the genesis for this book which you are now reading. We are all greatly indebted to President Barack Obama. The next chapter examines the general meaning of the term audacity. Read on.
Chapter Two
What Is Audacity?
In order that we might properly understand the subject under discussion, we ought to ask ourselves the question, "What is audacity?" There are at least six other words or terms that can explain what audacity is. The first of these is courage.
The dictionary says that audacity is "the quality of having enough courage to take risks or say impolite things." At the same time, this definition adds that audacity means "to be brave and shocking." Thus, bravery is our second word.
The third is temerity. It is an "unreasonable confidence that is likely to offend someone." It is important to point out here that this apparent "unreasonable(ness)" depends upon one's own perspective. I do not believe that a person who is audacious thinks that he or she is unreasonable in his or her actions.
The fourth word that offers something close to the meaning of audacity is effrontery, defined as "behavior that you think someone should be ashamed of, although they do not seem to be." Given the particular kind of behavior, an audacious person need not be ashamed for being audacious. Otherwise, how then can he or she be audacious?
The fifth term that helps us to understand what audacity means is guts. It is defined as "the courage and determination you need to do something difficult or unpleasant." Audacious people are people with the guts for action. They do not sit idly and just wish that something good might happen to them. No, sir; they take action however perilous and difficult the task may be. They are the go-getters.
In the Bible, Esther represented this kind of person when, in her decision to meet with the king at a time of national crisis, she resolved: "If I perish, I perish" (Esther 4:16). Now, in retrospect, did her decision and action appear "unreasonable?" You bet. Apparently, she was making an unprecedented, unnecessary, and dangerous decision. Although it was a difficult and unpleasant decision, she was a woman with guts. She possessed the audacity to meet the king, in violation of a royal decree!
The sixth word is unusual boldness that may seem offensive to the beholder. Esther, again, displayed such a quality. The celebrated Nigerian pastor and General Overseer of the Deeper Life Christian Ministries, Reverend W. F. Kumuyi, told a story of a person who had unusual boldness.
"One day," wrote Kumuyi, "a soldier assisted Napoleon when his horse became unmanageable. The great general said. 'Thank you, Captain!' The soldier immediately took him at his word, and said: 'Of what regiment, sir?' Napoleon, pleased at his sharp perception and ready trust, replied: 'Of my guard.'"
Napoleon rode away, but the soldier promptly went to the staff officers and announced to them that he was the Captain of Napoleon's Guards. It took an unusual boldness to do so knowing that his fellow soldiers would not believe him.
What, then, is audacity? It is the possession and exercise of the virtues of courage, bravery, temerity, effrontery, guts, and unusual boldness to do the unbelievable. It is faith triumphing over fear and doubts. Audacity will produce a tenacity (the knack or daring attitude), which is often sustained by persistence and perseverance.
Audacity is the willingness and ability to take risks with a confidence that may likely offend someone else. It is the quality exemplified by the young shepherd boy, David, when he was about to take on Goliath, the Philistine. Surely, David offended his older brothers who were regular soldiers in King Saul's military.
But, David had the audacity to seek permission from King Saul to take on Goliath. And he did. That kind of audacity generally produces men and women of significance and greatness. It produces men and women of success.
In our time, it has produced Barack Hussein Obama, who has shown the world that he could do what appeared to be impossible: run for the presidency of the United States as an African American and win. Barack Obama is a man with an audacious spirit.
He is now the 44th president of the United States, America's first black president ever! All peoples of his race are very proud of him. With one stroke, Obama has wiped out the curse of the language of racial inferiority from future textbooks.
Chapter Three
What Is Faith?
Faith is the opposite of fear. -Emma S. Etuk
There may be many definitions of the word faith, but the best that I have found is in the Christian Bible. There, in the book of Hebrews, the eleventh chapter, verse 1, it says:
Now, faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not yet seen. (Italics added)
Now, you have to ponder on and think carefully what this text really says and means. This text does not say that faith is an abstraction, a will-o'-the-wisp; it says that faith is a substance. Moreover, the text does not say that faith is a figment of one's own imagination, a product of sheer human reasoning; it says that faith is the evidence of the things not yet seen.
At verse six of the text, the Bible states that,
Without faith, it is impossible to please God.
In other words, faith-authentic, biblical faith-is rooted in the supernatural. In another book of the Bible, believed to have been authored by St. Paul, it is recorded that "whatsoever is not of faith is sin" (Rom.14:36). This is a very strong and powerful statement worthy of serious consideration.
In Romans 1:17 and Habakkuk 2:4, the Bible says that "the just shall live by faith." You may recall that the discovery of the text in Romans by the German priest, Martin Luther, led to the Protestant Reformation, which swept across Europe in the sixteenth century.
Faith is a dynamic, creative force in the universe. The Scriptures say that "through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God" (Heb. 11:3). We cannot scientifically prove all the creative works of God; we have to accept them by faith. Thus, faith is a catalyst that leads to action and produces a product, a substance of the things hoped for.
It is important to always keep in mind this other fact, namely, that without action, faith is dead (James 2:26). Yet without faith, it is impossible to accomplish much. Hence, one cannot succeed without faith. Happily, the Bible also says that God has given to each of us a measure of faith. Therefore no one can claim that he or she is completely without faith (Rom. 12:3).
Jesus often taught that faith is crucial in our daily life. He made the incredible statement that if one had faith as little as that of a mustard seed, one can move mountains! One can do the impossible through and by faith (Matt. 17:20).
People of faith do nearly impossible things. I said "nearly impossible" because, actually, there are no impossibilities. "All things are possible to him who believes," Jesus said (Mk. 9:23).
The Faith Process
It should by now be obvious that faith involves a process. There are categories and varieties of faith. Let's look at a few:
* Saving faith (Rom. 10:9,10) * Little (small) faith (Mt. 8:26; 17:20)
* Great faith (Mt. 8:10)
* Temporary faith (Lk. 8:13)
* Intellectual faith (James 2:19)
* Dead faith (James 2:17, 20)
* Faith of the Son of God (Gal. 2:20)
* Strong faith (Rom. 4:20)
A person has the ability to develop his or her faith, implying that there can be a growth in faith. This may explain why some people achieve and succeed much more than others. It is recommended here that we must appraise the level of our faith from time to time.
The Faith Practice
Faith, like prayer, does not need proof; it needs practice. By this, I mean that you exercise your faith by getting it into action. Faith has to be ignited always if you want to see its power and concrete results.
The Bible speaks of many faith practitioners who attested to the workability of faith. For example, the Bible says that the prophet Elijah was a man like us, but he was also a man of tremendous faith who, through earnest prayers, shut up the heavens so that it did not rain for three years. Later on, he prayed again, and it rained (James 5:17-18).
At an encounter with the agnostics, skeptics, and, perhaps, the atheists of his day, Elijah called down fire from heaven to lick up a watery evening sacrifice, to the amazement and wonder of the onlookers (I Kings 17-18: 45). It is no wonder that his God had to transport him back to heaven in a chariot of fire. He did not see death.
Elijah's successor in office, Elisha, did even more miracles than him by the audacity of faith. He raised dead people back to life. He even caused an iron axe to float or swim. He healed poisonous water and made it drinkable once more. After Elisha died, some years later a dead man who was dropped accidentally on his grave's bones rose back to life! (II Kings 13:21)
In the book of Hebrews, chapter 11, we have a catalog of great faith-workers who accomplished incredible things. They include the patriarch and father of faith, Abraham; Abel; Enoch (another man who never tasted death); Noah; Isaac and his son, Jacob; Sarah, Abraham's wife; Joseph; and Moses, the great Jewish lawgiver.
Among others were those Hebrews who actually crossed the Red Sea; Joshua and Caleb, who captured Jericho; Rahab, the harlot; Gideon; Barak; Samson; Jephthah; David; Samuel; and many, many prophets. The great exploits of these men and women are recorded in Hebrews 11:33-38.
Only the theologically insane would dare to say that all these men and women simply represented mythological Jewish legends. But, even if they were just legends, what of the following faith workers of our own time, such as
* Oral Roberts
* T. L. Osborne
* Morris Cerullo
* Kathryn Kuhlman
* Benny Hinn
* Uma Ukpai
* Rev. O. Ezekiel
* Pastor W. F. Kumuyi
and a host of many others? What of the evangelist Reinhard Bonnke? Are they all "fake" faith workers? Are you really sure? What makes you so absolutely sure?
If, as the Bible claims, "Jesus Christ [is] the same yesterday, today and forever" (Heb. 13: 8), then faith in His name can produce the same results as it did in Bible times. This is simply logical. Faith in God can lead to great achievements in all the areas of life. God is not limited to any one circumstance or to any one historical epoch.
As the book of the Acts of the Apostles shows, anyone with faith in God can move mountains. This is the hard fact about God. He is unchangeable. Jesus said that with God, nothing is impossible. We must always bear in mind that without faith, it is impossible to please God. Faith comes by hearing the Word of God and trusting that whatever He says is always true.
It is by the ignition of faith that action occurs. You and I will never attempt nor achieve great things without faith. Faith is the dynamite for successful living. We have to embrace it as we would intimately embrace our spouse.
Chapter Four
The Secret of Faith
It may not be quite obvious to many faith-seekers that the secret of faith is simply belief. In the text that we have been studying (Heb. 11:6), there is hidden the secret of faith. The passage reads as follows:
Whoever comes to God must believe that He is (exists).
Get it? Anyone who wants to know anything about God must first of all believe that God exists! Not only does He exist, He has revealed Himself; He has spoken. We do not worship a dumb and deaf God. Then there is an addition: God is the rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.
(Continues...)
Excerpted from The Audacity of Faithby Emma S. Etuk Copyright © 2010 by Emma S. Etuk, PhD. Excerpted by permission.
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