I’ve got a lot of questions. Big ones. Really big ones, in fact.
Questions about God and questions about life; questions about meaning.
There are so many things I don’t know and I can often get so frustrated that I don’t have the answers. There are so many things I don’t understand or can’t comprehend and I can feel so trapped in my restricted human form.
“How did we get here?”
“Why are we here?”
“Is God real?”
…and the list goes on.
Sometimes in faith-filled communities, these big questions get pushed aside and swept under the rug in the name of ‘faith’ or ‘believing without seeing.’
Sometimes, this is an innocent mistake that comes from anything from a lack of time, to a lack of understanding the question. But sometimes the people who hunger for a deeper revelation of God and His nature get fed with Styrofoam peanuts rather than the fulfilling meal of truth and wisdom.
Are we scared of the big questions?
If so, why?
Are we scared to admit that we don’t have all the answers? Are we scared to even ask them in case we don’t like the responses?
Once a friend (who isn’t religious) said to me, “Religion is just a construct that humans created to comfort themselves in their fear of being meaningless. People have to believe in something because they don’t want to admit that their lives don’t really matter.”
This is such a sad thought to me; however, I’m not surprised that they thought this way.
Redeem the reputation
We’ve all seen plenty of Christian examples say they’re “standing by what they believe in” when ignorantly refusing to listen or even acknowledge anyone else’s opinions. We’ve all seen Christians spreading bitterness and anger and twisting the Bible into a licence to hate.
We’ve seen Christians lie, steal, cheat, kill and anything else that is the opposite of what Jesus taught and yet still carry the banner of “love.”
With this sort of thing being highlighted more and more, it’s no surprise that religion, especially Christianity, has lost so much credibility.
The media doesn’t help this of course; most self-sacrificial, loving and good acts by Christians go unpublished due to the current predisposition of Christianity in our society. However, there are many Christians who have fairly earnt a reputation of ‘merciless and unkind’ and that is something we all need to work to reconcile and redeem.
Let’s ask anyway
To my friend’s question, my response was, “I see why you could think that. However, I think atheism is just a construct that humans created to comfort themselves in their fear of being meaningful. People can’t believe in a God, because then they would have to admit that they don’t know everything; they would have to accept that their lives are not just their own.”
It’s safe to say that this conversation got us both thinking and asking our inner selves questions of our own.
Are we scared of the big questions? If so, that’s ok. It’s ok to be scared. It’s ok to be unsure.
We, ourselves, are finite beings. We will always need to return to faith to fill the gaps, because really (warning: philosophical questions approaching), who can be totally sure of anything? What is being sure of something? Do we need to be sure of things? If so, how sure?
So, we’re scared and unsure. We don’t know everything, and we don’t have all the answers.
But let’s ask the big, scary questions anyway.
Let’s feel silly and call out into the universe. Let’s talk aloud to an ever-present Creator in hopes that He’s close and that He can hear.
Let’s be archaeologists; let’s excavate and analyse this intelligent world looking for directions. Let’s be pirates and dig for treasure, knowing there are secrets to be found all around us.
Let’s go after a deeper understanding of the One who made this incredible place that we call home. Let us never let go of the desire to pursue and truly know and connect with our maker.
What questions are you asking this week?
Laura Miles is an excitable and fast-paced Brit, living in Australia. Loves: tea, maximalist fashion and people. Hates: details, brushing her hair and being put into a box. After committing to studying, she is expectant and excited to see all the crazy things that the Lord is going to do in her life.