One Phenomenom and Three Steps to Build Your Faith
Several years ago, my sweet Pastor husband let me choose a car that was just for me. We had paid off his truck and it was time to replace our other vehicle. Prior to truck ownership we had owned a small SUV and that’s what I wanted. I liked how it enabled me to sit higher and I loved the benefits of the hatchback for loading groceries and whatever else I happened to purchase. The search began.
Searching for the Perfect Car
I sat in many small SUVS to find the one that fit my frame perfectly. Often, the dashboards made me feel as if I couldn’t see the end of the hood, which I found annoying. Cars without electric seats didn’t raise me high enough for optimal road viewing. Some vehicles felt too big, and some felt too tight. I’m sure my sweet Pastor husband felt he was shopping with someone related to Goldilocks.
We discovered my ideal vehicle was a Subaru Forester. We bought a green one and I named her Gretta. I am fond of Gretta and consider her to be very “me.” Oddly, I noticed quite a few green Subaru Foresters in our small town after we brought Gretta home. I saw Gretta as one of a kind, but, evidently, she is ordinary.
The Baader-Meinhof Phenomenon
My experience is so common it has a name: the Baader-Meinhof Phenomenon, or frequency bias or frequency illusion. When we learn something new or acquire something new our attention awakens; we become more aware of this new knowledge or item. Our brain decides this new object or concept is interesting to us and therefore our brain naturally takes notice when it surfaces somewhere in our awareness.
In a Healthline.com article entitled, “What the Baader-Meinhof Phenomenon Is and Why You May See It Again… and Again,” the author, Ann Pietrangelo says, “According to [Arnold W.] Zwicky, the frequency illusion involves two processes. The first is selective attention, which is when you notice things that interest you most while disregarding the rest. The second is confirmation bias, which is when you look for things that support your way of thinking while disregarding things that don’t.”
Created to See God
The miracle of our minds is amazing. Think about it: God has created us to awaken to Him, becoming increasingly aware of Him as our interest in Him grows. God formed us to have frequency bias and as we are more fascinated with who He is, we naturally notice how He chooses to show up in our lives. He has made us to see Him. The hitch is He needs to be what grabs our attention.
Tucked amongst a list of the heroes of faith in Hebrews 11 is a helpful principle to keeping God in our attention space.
“Now without faith it is impossible to please God, since the one who draws near to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.”
Hebrews 11:6
The author of Hebrews clearly states that God will reward those who seek Him. He also declares that we can’t please God without faith. Faith is one of those words that we feel like we understand and then struggle to explain to someone else. Know what I mean?
Understanding Faith
The original Greek word translated faith is “pistis.” I like the way the authors of the Revised English Version of the Bible explain it.
“’Faith’ has been defined and explained so many different ways that it is a difficult concept to grasp. In contrast, “trust” is simple to understand. . . it is confidence, a firm persuasion, a conviction based on the reliability, or trustworthiness, of the person or thing that is trusted. Also, trust has to have an object; something that is trusted. The human mind cannot “just trust.” We have to trust something. It can be God, our spouse, our friend, or even that the sun will come up tomorrow, but trust requires an object; we have to trust some trustworthy thing. Lastly, our trust does not make, or force, anything to happen. We trust the sun will come up, but that does not make it come up. We trust that our so-far-always-reliable-car will start when we turn the key, but that does not make it start. We trust our friend will help us in a pinch, but that does not force him to help. We trust God loves us, but that does not make Him help us in any given situation. Pistis (trust; faith) is not a force. It does not make things happen.”
https://www.revisedenglishversion.com/Appendix/16/Faith_is_Trust
For us to please God, we must be firmly convinced we can trust God. It is a simple concept that is far from easy. Hebrews 11:6 gives us three steps we can choose to act on.
Three Steps to Please God
First, we are to believe God exists, that He is. There is no better way to strengthen our belief than to know Him. We must be in God’s Word: read the stories of His provision and protection; learn the words used to describe His character; study Jesus’ behavior; dig into His commands and His promises.
Second, we are to seek Him. We get to lean into the miracle of our minds and frequency bias. Just as we study how God showed up for His people in the Bible, we need to awaken ourselves to how God shows up for us in our day to day lives. As our minds and hearts become more interested in who God is and how He moves, our brains will be increasingly more aware of His presence and power in our lives. Our increased awareness generates greater interest in the God who loves us which then empowers our brains to take more notice of God’s movement.
Finally, we must choose to do the work to draw near to God. Drawing near places us in position to learn more about Him, and to recognize Him more quickly when we are seeking. When we choose to draw near, we are developing the relationship that promotes greater trust, and we are moving away from that which distracts us from seeing God clearly. It’s helping our brains use the benefit of confirmation bias so the Holy Spirit can anchor truth in our souls. Drawing near to God may mean saying no to things that seem good, but don’t develop intimacy with Christ; this helps with selective attention.
Faith and the Baader-Meinhof Phenomenon
The process and wisdom offered in Hebrews 11:6 is not haphazard or accidental. As we take the above steps toward strengthening our trust muscles, our minds and hearts become more engaged with who God is. We build our relationship with Him, and as with any relationship, the more we know the other person, the more we see how their life intersects ours.
Think about frequency bias and your friendships. When you hear a certain song, you identify it as the song your friend likes so well. You hear someone mention a restaurant and you remember that’s where you and another friend spent such a wonderful evening. You see a small knick-knack while out shopping and you know it’s the perfect gift for another friend. Your friends come quickly to mind because they are frequently in your thoughts. The same is true with Christ.
The nuggets of truth in Hebrews 11:6 set us up to awaken more and more to the wonder and movement of God in our lives. Then, just like I notice green Subaru Foresters everywhere, we notice God’s grace and goodness in our lives. We empower our belief, and then we seek Him more. That leads us to choose to draw closer to Him and our faith (our trust) becomes stronger. We please God and He rewards us with a deeper intimacy with Him, which keeps our minds awakened to Him and the Baader-Meinhof Phenomenon continues its cycle.
Take a Step of Faith
I’m praying you will take the steps to trust God increasingly more. I’m praying for your faith to be stronger and that you will delight in pleasing God. I’m believing the Baader-Meinhof Phenomenon will help you better see God’s grace and goodness in your life as you seek Him and know Him more intimately. God is good, He has created us wondrously.
Faith Photo by Alex Shute on Unsplash
