Please keep this allegory in mind when you read about what I am learning, hearing, and thinking about here in Israel. Some things I talk about or present could be a little different than what you have been taught growing up or might slightly differ from some of your own beleifs. Keep in mind though that our God is a mystery and when we think we have Him or His Word all figured out then we've turned Him into something smaller than ourselves. I have been asking a lot of questions about my faith, life, and myself. I encourage you too to ask questions, for I truly beleive that the unexamined beleif is not worth beleiving.
"And this is why questions are so central to faith. A question by its very nature acknowledges that the person asking the question does not have all the answers. And because the person does not have all of the answers, they are looking outside of themselves for guidance. Questions, no matter how shocking or blasphemous or arrogant or ignorant or raw, are rooted in humility. A humility that understands that I am not God. And there is more to know." -Rob Bell Velvet Elvis
This is so HUGE TO ME!!!
Sometimes I question the very existence of God, if there is such a thing as Heaven or Hell, why this or why that? And then after questioning so much (which by the way questioning sometimes comes after bad things have happened in your day, life or just too often) a small miracle happens; either the birth of a healthy child, or the sight of an amazing flower bloomed, a sunset, our own breathing and beating of our hearts; all of those little things puts you in perspective. You are once again channeled in reality, your feet are on the ground and you Thank God you are touching the soil, or feeling the breeze, or feeling the warmth of loved ones, and those are the moments I need to hold onto.
Recently I have seen a change in some of my personal spiritual practices, that I was not doing say 2 weeks ago, and I am so pumped and excited because I think I am going to be able to keep with it all, especially with the help of some wise people in my life. But reading Chad's post made me realize that it is OK to question my faith. If I think I know it all or do not have any questions about it, then I have gotten complacent. I do not want to be complacent in my faith, and if I am going to ask these questions then I need to be actively looking to my Lord for the answers, through prayer, through friend's wisdom, through his word. What ever the method is, if I am going to ask the question I have to want to know the answer. And right now I do.
