Theists, what does faith mean to you?

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It is of course a rather commonly held notion by atheists that faith is an excuse theists hide behind to justify what they view as an irrational mode of thinking, a flag to be waved to elevate bad forms of thinking to the status of a virtue. As a result most debates between atheists and theists reach an impasse due to this central contention; theists tend to justify their beliefs through faith while atheists contend that faith is a bad means of justifying any belief.

I know how atheists feel about faith, that's not what this thread is for. Instead I inquire the forum theists to share what faith means to them. What do you think faith is and how would you define it? Do you consider your beliefs to be faith-based? How does faith affect your life? Do you think you'd be a different person if faith was no longer an integral component of identity? And so on.

I look forward to your answers.

I'm starting to wonder if I'm the only theist on here willing to respond to these posts.  

 I find it quite interesting how the word "faith" has evolved over the last few hundred years and even more so in the last 20 years.  In the world’s eyes, to say "I have faith" means: I believe something but I’m not sure if it’s true or real, but I need it to be and I want it to be, so I have faith. You make that big leap into the dark. Strong faith, therefore, would be when you suspect what you believe isn’t true, and you are still able to believe it. That’s strong faith. The strongest possible kind of faith you could have would be when you know it’s not true and you’re still able to believe it. I mean, how much faith do you need then?

The word faith comes from the Latin 'fides' from which we get the word "fidelity".  Simlarly in Greek, The word faith comes from the Greek word 'pistis'.  This word, pistis, ultimately comes from the verb "peitho", which means "to be persuaded". ‘Pistis’, therefore, the noun, carries the same kind of connotation. It means that you are persuaded as to something’s truth and reality, therefore you can trust it.

I have faith in God as the creator of this universe, author of life as I can see His workings in reality, history, morality, in my own life and others lives that I am persuaded to have faith in Him.