Aim:
To help young people understand what faith is, and how it is present in daily life. Thus enabling them to develop faith and motivation in relation to making spiritual progress.

Introduction:
Although we may not realise it, to accomplish any task we need to have failth in others and ourselves. Therefore it can be safely said that without faith nothing is achieved. We may not think about it but we have faith in the law of nature. Likewise we need to have faith in God in order to make spritual progress. It is this first step that makes the following steps possible.

"Faith is the basis of every act. You do not run away from the barber because he is armed with a sharp razor. You place faith in him and allow him to cut your hair, quietly submitting to his idiosyncrasies. You give costly clothes to the washer since you have faith that he will return them washed and ironed, so believe in the inner motivator, the atma within, the voice of God".
- Sathya Sai Speaks 6, page 110

From experience arises knowledge, but first we must act on faith. We must act to win the experience that rewards faith.

"Some people say that they will believe in God only when they are afforded some experience of divine will. How can faith arise in the will for those with such an attitude? Of course, if some have no faith, the loss is theirs. The Lord is unconcerned. Two and two make four even if some swear that they will not believe it."
- Sathya Sai Speaks 10, page 227

Quotations:
"Faith is the plant of slow growth: its roots go deep into the heart. Silence is the best Sadhana (spiritual practice) to guard faith."
- Sathya Sai Speaks 5, page 68

"Steady faith alone can earn victory. you cannot be changing your allegiance as and when you please. Hold fast until the realisation is awarded."
- Sathya Sai Speaks 5, page 73

"That faith can come only slowly, by association with the godly, by reading the lives and experiences of godly persons, and by gaining experience oneself."
- Sathya Sai Speaks 7, page 124

Activities:
1. Research the definition of 'Faith' and 'Surrender' in each of the world religions.
2. Compare and contrast their similarities.
3. What are the different types of faith?
4. Write a small sketch and do a role play on surrendering to God.
5. What does Sri Sathya Sai Baba say about 'surrender'?
6. Write a 500 word essay explaining why some people receive experiences that strengthen their faith, while others do not.
7. Explain why faith must come before experience.
8. In a group discuss methods of developing faith in yourself and other individuals.
9. Research history and list 3 people in situations which demonstrate that their faith has overcome an obstacle affecting a larger group of people.

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