BLAINE'S BLOG
Asking God Life's Tough Questions
I strongly believe in asking questions, even in asking God questions about who He is and why He does what He does. Our mistake is not in asking questions. Our mistake comes from not diligently searching for real answers. I have found many of the answers to questions I once asked and now the answers seem very fundamental to me. I do not say this to sound all-wise or as one who has "arrived." I say it to remind myself that perspective changes as we learn. As I have found answers to past questions, I find new questions. I figure this process will continue, possibly even into eternity. Wouldn't it be an amazing thing to sit before God and ask, "How did you get the universe to work?" To me, that's part of what might happen in heaven. That gives me great peace.
Just because God doesn't totally make sense to me at this point in my life does not mean that He is illogical. If I tried to teach calculus to a second-grader, would anyone expect her to learn it? At this point in her life, she lacks both the intellect and the foundational knowledge that allow one to comprehend calculus. Someday she might be capable. Does that mean that calculus is illogical? Of course not. Similarly, just because there are parts of God that I don't fully comprehend doesn't mean that He is illogical, irrational, or unfair.
So I encourage you to keep asking questions. But what I especially encourage you to do is diligently search for answers. Unfortunately, some people either leave faith or do not give faith a chance because they think they have conceived some God-defying question. Sometimes their "tough" questions are actually quite trite and unoriginal. This often seems true of people of above average intelligence. Instead of humbling themselves to search for all possible answers, they bask in their self-adulation. Such arrogance will always distance us from God. If we are willing to ask the tough questions, we must be willing to do the tough work of finding real answers.
As you search out the answers, I encourage you to read things written by C.S. Lewis and others who have asked the same questions and put much thought and effort into finding the answers. The more modern set of works by Lee Strobel (The Case for Faith, The Case for Christ, & The Case for a Creator) are also very good. If you want a good website that addresses a variety of tough topics, I suggest http://www.jimmcguiggan.com/index.asp. It humbles me to read such men and benefit from their vastly superior intelligence. If another man is that much smarter than me, then how do I even begin to compare myself with God? That’s why, above all else, we should read His book.