Have faith in yourself. I have faith in you. Because you’ve gotta have faith. Faith, trust, and pixie dust.

For many, faith is nearly-synonymous with religion—a defined set of teachings and practices tied to particular texts, figures, regions, and historical developments. No one is to blame for this, for the assumption that faith is strictly tied to religion has been commonplace for quite some time in wider society.

But faith is more than this. Indeed, faith is more. Faith is more than articulate creeds and structured liturgies, dense texts and intricate images. It’s more than communal gatherings and solitary moments of reflection. It can be cultivated in a host of environments and a variety of experiences. Faith simultaneously encompasses and transcends all the aforementioned.

At its most fundamental level, faith is simply more.

When we say to someone “I have faith in you,” we essentially mean “I believe in you.”

Faith is an ascent to something—placing one’s trust, hope, and energy in it. In other words, faith is to believe in something. But that something may not always be as clear to us as when we tell a loved one we believe in them.

We believe in others. We believe in ourselves. But beyond human relationships and religious creeds, faith is the fundamental recognzition there there is something more—more to life, existence, personhood, creation.

By having faith in ourselves, we believe in our capacity for growth in light of our experiences and gifts through triumphs and adversity. By having faith in others, we are driven by humility and joy to recognize the gifts and potential in those around us. By having faith in a deity or creed, we believe that there is a divine presence from which all that exists finds its source and sustenance. By having faith, we pierce the bubbles of our egos so that we may experience life in its fullness despite often treading into unknown territory.

It is no coincidence that we say “I have faith in you” just as often as we say “I believe in you.” Because faith is belief, and vice versa. But be reminded that faith is not exclusive religious; rather, faith is merely human.

At times, the thing which we have placed our faith in may disappoint, underwhelm, transgress, or even harm us. But by having faith in something, we look to the unknown in the hope that there is far more than what meets the eye. With the right discernment and enough courage, it is a risk worth taking.

It is through faith that we place our trust and hope in something that’s simultaneously within and beyond ourselves. At the same time, we recognize that there is more to life than our individual existence; the mystery of faith encompasses the visible and invisible, compelling us to wrestle with the mystery of life while leaving us in awe of it.

Have faith in yourself. Have faith in others. Have faith, knowing that there is fat more to life than we could ever imagine.