The Institute For Mere Christianity Blog
Here you can view regular updates to our Blog. You will find articles of encouragement, articles to motivate you to ponder your life course and how it might better conform to The Way. Feel free to pass on your comments, questions and concerns.
HELP MY UNBELIEF
Most of us believe or want to believe in something. We’d like to believe in miracles, to believe that God thinks we’re special, to believe that good things are on their way to us. I want to believe, I do believe. I’ve learned to be happy in life a person must be optimistic, that’s one of the aspects of faith. Study after study in my field of sociology confirm the essential of optimism for a satisfying life. Most of us have experienced at least an inkling of beauty, joy, rapture, transfixed by the vastness of nature and the endless possibilities of life. Most of us would concur, “I believe in something greater, something more astounding than me, something I am a part of, that I belong to. I want so much for justice to triumph, I believe it’s possible, I believe it will happen.
However, there is the other side of the coin. I see suffering, I feel the uncaring, I feel the “me-first” attitude of many people and I doubt. The doubts invariably creep in…nobody seems to care. But I want to believe, I can’t feel good about myself, my life, the world’s life without believing in at least the possibility of a better world. I desperately want to believe in something better, something that gives meaning to life and a goal to existence.
Like most of you, I have those times when things are going well, I’m happy. It’s easy to be optimistic, to believe but then… you know what happens…I guess that’s why I was so impressed by a little passage in the Bible found at Mark 9:24. A father of a suffering little boy confessed to Jesus, “I believe, help my unbelief.” When I read that I realized that man, that father, said in 5 words what it would take me pages to say if I weren’t in tune to his perception. He said it all, “I believe, I want to believe in miracles, believe that something good is on the way, but there is a part of me that has doubts, help that part of me to believe.” I love that honesty.
Thank you and please visit often.