Acting on faith or Acting prematurely?

For a while, I have tried to figure out the difference, or whether there is a difference, between the two. I know what faith is (Webster's definition: "confidence or trust in a person or thing; belief that is not based on proof." Biblical definition: "substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.") and although I do struggle with it from time to time, I do *think* I have faith in most situations. And in having faith, I try to act on it.



Case in point: I've applied for yet another job, this time in Jackson. Looking at the qualifications and job description, I know I can do this job. I truly believe this is the job for me for right now, and I have faith that I will get this job. (I have that pit of my stomach, gut-feeling that I've gotten for just about every job I've actually gotten.) So, since I believe I am claiming it as MY JOB, I've already set up a budget & my plan for paying off bills. I've determined how much longer I will stay with my folks and have started looking at apartments I could afford on my own. I've started researching the different departments and people I will have to interact with and picking out new little office items I'd like to have when I move. I've started cleaning a few things out and off of my desk, filing some things away, showing others where things are and how to do certain things that I do.



However, today I stopped and asked myself: Am I acting on faith? Or am I merely getting overly excited and "counting my chickens before they hatch" as the old saying goes? I want to believe that I am being led to do all of this because I won't be at this current job much longer, but will be at a new agency instead. But how do I know whether I'm jumping the gun?

I would hate to think that I'm setting myself up for failure, but it is a possibility. How many times do we set ourselves up like that, whether it be with jobs, relationships, etc.? We expect certain things, count on certain things happening and act accordingly. So when things don't go as planned, have we made the disappointment even worse on ourselves by acting on our expectations and our faith, or were we justified in doing so? And how do you know when it really is faith and not just excitement & being anxious to make something happen whether it's meant to be or not.

These are just my musings on the subject. I don't have any answers, which is really too bad considering I need some.