Faith is walking face first and full speed Meaning Factcheck Usage

Faith is walking face-first and full speed… it’s not about having a map, it’s about trusting the path will appear. It’s a powerful, active choice to move forward even when you can’t see the destination. This idea reframes faith from passive belief to courageous action.

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Table of Contents

• Meaning
• Explanation
• Origin & Factcheck
• Context
• Usage Examples
• FAQ

Meaning

At its core, this quote means that faith is an act of bold, proactive trust, not cautious, fearful waiting. It’s about momentum in the face of uncertainty.

Explanation

Let’s break this down. “Walking face-first” – that’s key. It’s not tiptoeing backward, it’s not hiding. It’s full engagement, vulnerability, and a willingness to meet whatever comes head-on. And “full speed into the dark”? That’s the real kicker. It’s not about waiting for the lights to turn on. It’s about the conviction that the act of moving itself is what creates the light, or at the very least, teaches your eyes how to see in the dark. It’s a deeply active, almost aggressive form of hope. It’s the opposite of playing it safe.

Quote Summary

Context	Attributes
Original Language	English (3668)
Category	Spiritual (229)
Topics	courage (145), faith (73), trust (147)
Literary Style	aphoristic (181)
Emotion / Mood	mystical (11), resolute (28)
Overall Quote Score	85 (305)

Origin & Factcheck

This line comes straight from Elizabeth Gilbert’s 2006 memoir, Eat, Pray, Love. It was published in the United States and became a global phenomenon. You sometimes see it floating around unattributed on social media, but it’s definitively hers from that book.

Attribution Summary

Context	Attributes
Author	Elizabeth Gilbert (39)
Source Type	Book (4032)
Source/Book Name	Eat, Pray, Love: One Woman's Search for Everything Across Italy, India and Indonesia (39)
Origin Timeperiod	21st Century (1892)
Original Language	English (3668)
Authenticity	Verified (4032)

Where is this quotation located?

Quotation	Faith is walking face-first and full speed into the dark
Book Details	Publication Year/Date: 2006; ISBN: 978-0-670-03471-0; Last edition: Penguin Books, 2010; Number of pages: 334.
Where is it?	Chapter 60, India section, Approximate page 199 from 2010 edition

Context

This quote lands in the “Pray” section, during her time at an ashram in India. She’s grappling with her spirituality, trying to quiet her mind and understand what faith even means after a painful divorce and a general life unraveling. This definition isn’t given to her by a guru; it’s the hard-won insight she arrives at herself. It’s the answer to her own struggle.

Usage Examples

I’ve found this concept incredibly useful in coaching. You use it with:

• The Hesitant Founder: Someone who has the business plan but is terrified to quit their day job. Faith isn’t knowing the startup will succeed; it’s quitting anyway and building the plane as you fly it.
• The Heartbroken Friend: The one who says they’ll never love again. Faith is agreeing to that one blind date, not because you’re sure they’re “the one,” but because you’re choosing to move toward life again, even though it’s scary.
• Anyone Starting a Creative Project: Staring at the blank page, the empty canvas. Faith is putting down the first terrible sentence, making the first bold brushstroke, trusting that the act of starting will reveal the next step.

To whom it appeals?

Context	Attributes
Theme	Principle (838)
Audiences	believers (72), leaders (2619), readers (72), seekers (406), students (3111)
Usage Context/Scenario	faith-based talks (9), life transitions (1), motivational posters (54), self-help blogs (11), sermons (21)

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FAQ

Question: Isn’t this just being reckless?

Answer: Great question. It walks the line, for sure. But recklessness is often mindless. This is mindful. It’s a conscious, calculated decision to accept the risk because the potential reward – growth, love, a fulfilled life – is worth it. It’s not about ignoring the dark; it’s about trusting yourself to navigate it.

Question: How is this different from hope?

Answer: Hope is the feeling that things might get better. Faith, as defined here, is the action you take based on that feeling. Hope is the wish for a path. Faith is the first step you take to create it.

Question: Can this apply to non-religious people?

Answer: Absolutely. This is one of the quote’s greatest strengths. It’s not about faith in a god; it’s about faith in life, in yourself, in the process, in the universe, in the fundamental goodness of taking a chance. It’s a secular spirituality of action.