A nonbeliever friend of mine who is still very spiritual nonetheless sent me this and it just made my day. Richard, a mentor for me on my DTS, asked me to tell him what I would say if someone wanted to know what fueled my belief in God. Well besides the obvious, faith. It's a tough question no doubt, but I gave an answer around the start of DTS which was not good enough for Rich. I wasn't truthful... I think I knew deep down, but wasn't quite sure how to express it. He ended up giving me till the end of outreach to ponder that question, and this poem is pratically what my answer was to Rich in Cambodia, right before we left. Blows my mind, and it absolutely blows my heart away how my pal, Elaine sent me this.
In an age without many superstitions, we look to nature and the world around us for an explanation of our lives; in any event, we see only science's cause and effect--life is merely the combination of chemicals in the correct amounts, leaves fall because of the natural processes associated with the changing of the seasons, and a black rook arranges its
feathers in the rain . . . it's all natural and easily explained by
science. But there are many things that science cannot explain, and many longings that it will never satisfy: it cannot explain our emotions--why a particular sight or smell causes inspiration, nostalgia, or dread; it cannot explain our longing for the supernatural; it cannot explain our need
for significance, nor can science give us significance. To science, leaves fall because they fall, lovely but useless, wasted. And even if scientists manage to isolate the chemicals that produce emotions, their explanation
removes the wonder of the event without truly explaining it. For we are human, and we will always feel deep down inside that there must be more to life than merely what we can see and what science can tell us. Whether or
not science agrees with us, we know that miracles do occur; and we long for them.
The good news is that there is one person that can explain life in its entirety, infusing it with hope, purpose, and significance. He leaves no room for superstition; he allows science its proper place; yet he satisfies the soul with the miraculous. There is only one person out of the many
people in the world--past, present, and future--who can do this: He is not bound by finite limitations. His name is Jesus Christ, the only wise God, the one who created the world and holds it together by the word of his power. Knowing him puts life into perspective and satisfies the soul, freeing us both from superstitious fears and from a sense of insignificance. To him all things are significant. Do you know him?
feathers in the rain . . . it's all natural and easily explained by
science. But there are many things that science cannot explain, and many longings that it will never satisfy: it cannot explain our emotions--why a particular sight or smell causes inspiration, nostalgia, or dread; it cannot explain our longing for the supernatural; it cannot explain our need
for significance, nor can science give us significance. To science, leaves fall because they fall, lovely but useless, wasted. And even if scientists manage to isolate the chemicals that produce emotions, their explanation
removes the wonder of the event without truly explaining it. For we are human, and we will always feel deep down inside that there must be more to life than merely what we can see and what science can tell us. Whether or
not science agrees with us, we know that miracles do occur; and we long for them.
The good news is that there is one person that can explain life in its entirety, infusing it with hope, purpose, and significance. He leaves no room for superstition; he allows science its proper place; yet he satisfies the soul with the miraculous. There is only one person out of the many
people in the world--past, present, and future--who can do this: He is not bound by finite limitations. His name is Jesus Christ, the only wise God, the one who created the world and holds it together by the word of his power. Knowing him puts life into perspective and satisfies the soul, freeing us both from superstitious fears and from a sense of insignificance. To him all things are significant. Do you know him?
!
That was beautiful Tim...thanks for sharing ...
ReplyDeleteno worries!
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