Doubt or confusion over values and standards is likely to escalate in a world connected by social media in addition to traditional media, delivering in realtime continuous reports of terrorist attacks, senseless killings, vice, human trafficking, child prostitution and a host of other hideous criminal acts committed all over this world. Above all, when I receive news of the number of human lives lost in fatal disease, epidemics, travel disasters as in another plane crash, another ship lost at sea, my heart dips and sadness seeps into me. Deluged by all this tragic news, at times I do find it takes an effort honestly to join in church congregational proclamation that “God is good!”

Frankly I feel a painful awareness that there are no easy answers nor can I calm the turmoil in my own mind and emotions when I’m so challenged. I’ve come to realize that having a theologically trained and sound mind and theological reasons aren’t quite adequate in many situations. Even after wrestling with the truths of scripture and thank God, emerged affirming rather than abandoning my faith, I still don’t have answers to many paradoxes and perplexes that beset our human existence.

Whenever faced with such a dilemma, this soul-searching question somehow will surface in my mind: Are some Christians too spiritual to do any earthly good? For the past months, it has been my earnest prayer “God please forbid this to happen to your people.” However I regret I do observe there is more than a grain of truth in the criticism that some Christians appear to grow too spiritual to be of any earthly good. So what can a well-intentioned Christian do to avoid this pitfall ?

Ebola victims lying on the road waiting for medics.

Allow me to share some bits of advice which worked for me during the past year 2014 when I faced some challenges in my faith convictions. First the “Don’t”s – then the “Do”s :

Keep reminding yourself DON’T be overly troubled with confusion and doubts in your own mind or shared by others with you. I’m not saying not to be concerned but being concerned and being troubled are two entirely different things. Being troubled over something is not going to help solve anything.

Doubt and confusion swirls much like a whirlpool galaxy !

DON’T get too involved in controversy and lengthy debates that only contribute to increase doubts and undermine your faith. Because the more we struggle the more we will doubt and the deeper our confusion.

Genuine concern should be acted out in positive works.  If we’re truly concerned,  we must DO something positive about it. No way we can solve most of the problems of this world but certainly there are many ways we can make a difference when we begin to do something to help lighten another’s burden, brighten the path going forward, offer some comfort for the pain and hurts in this world. Last year our church in Canada actively contributed towards support of Sudanese victims during the Ebola crisis.

DO admit there exists doubt and confusion. And acknowledge the fact that we don’t have all the answers. I know this is not easy for when we face doubt, it nags and gnaws in our minds until we resort to our human response which is to suppress – we tell ourselves to stop thinking about it.

We seek to escape when we should engage.

And we do the same with our emotions : we repress our emotions, bury them or seek to escape by engaging in activities or visiting places which we think is fun. But does that really remove the nagging doubts from our minds? Not at all. All we did was to push it to some far corner of our minds or down  into our subconscious recesses from where it will certainly resurface again.

What strikes me most is there are numerous Christians who actually employ their religious faith as their  escape route. These are the ones who keep telling us :“ Leave your doubts and troubles behind – and just praise God. Hallelujah! All your problems will go away, Amen !”

Amen?

Amen? I say no way! I believe that unless and until we arrive at the point of admitting that we don’t have the answers,  those nagging feelings of doubt and confusion would continue to plague our minds. In extreme cases, these doubts and fears could throw you down into the pit of despair and you’ll land in depression or worse still, lose your sanity.

Why do we find it so difficult to admit we harbor doubts and are confused sometimes over some things? Why is it so difficult to admit we don’t have all the answers to fix our own lives?

I suggest it is because it goes against our human ego, our human pride. We all need a huge extra dose of humility to admit that we don’t have the answers to solve the problems we face on earth.  We like to feel we are in control and can find the answers if we try hard enough. But really, we don’t and we can’t.

It is most appropriate during this time of the year when churches all over the world are observing the season of Lent in preparation for Palm Sunday, Good Friday and Easter that we be reminded of our limitations and pray for humility to acknowledge that. Personally I endorse there are two basic truths as a Christian I have to live out:

1) DO my best to demonstrate love, strive to love even my detractors, although that’s humanly quite impossible, yet believe with God’s help, one day I can love and forgive those who have hurt and wronged me. I cannot do this in my own strength, so God help me.  I know he will because my God is loving and forgiving to the point of sacrificing his life on the Cross.

2) Admit that everyone ( Christians included ) don’t have all the answers. The chief difference is that being a Christian, I commit myself to my faith that God is good despite what I see through the lens of my own micro-view of the universe and creation because no matter what happens, I believe Romans 8:28 will work out in eternity:  

As for the presence of evil in this world and all our troubles, well, the fact is God never promised our earthly journey was going to be carefree and trouble free. Rather the Bible establishes the contrary. Thanks for reading. If you enjoyed, I invite you to like this on Facebook and enter your comments in the space provided below.