My kids are learning at an incredible pace right now. There is no end to the questions they ask each day. They are curious. They want to learn. And they believe I know the answer to everything.
It gets old sometimes. But I'm trying to appreciate it because in the next 10-15 years, things will change. They won't be seeking me out to answer their questions. They'll want me nearby to hear all of the answers they have to offer.
Something happens between the curiosity of childhood and the naive arrogance of the late teenage years.
At least it did for me.
I knew everything from ages 16-24.
And that was a problem. Because if you think you know everything, your brain no longer retains the ability to learn new things. Your brain is shut off from answers because you are determined to share the answers you have that no one else seems to have.
This reality has become so much more challenging with the advent of Google. Today, the answer to every conceivable question is available with the mere entry of a question into your internet search engine.
But all of this "knowledge" is dangerous. Because when you know everything, you lose the ability to know anything new. Your brain is no longer a sponge. Instead, it is a funnel ready to dispense wisdom into any waiting receptacle.
And this era of "knowledge" is downright deadly when it comes to our faith in God.
Most people would say the opposite of faith is doubt.
But the opposite of faith is not doubt.
The opposite of faith is certainty.
The Hebrews writer says it this way:
"Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see."
-Hebrews 11:1 (NIV)
Some read that and would say, "See Collin, faith is assurance about what we do not see." Certainty is a part of faith.
But my response is: "How in the world can you be sure about what you can't see?" You cannot be sure about what you cannot see. Christianity cannot be proven with empirical data. Every person listed in Hebrews 11 lived by faith when they died. That means they died hoping for something they never completely experienced on earth.
I believe faith and doubt can go together. In fact, they must go together. If you don't have moments of doubt, you're not living in the real world.
There are many reasons to doubt.
I just happen to believe there are more reasons to believe in God.
And my doubts are proof that my beliefs are grounded in a world yet to be perfected.
So much of our discourse is merely two certain parties unwilling to consider another alternative. This certainty seems to especially plague religious and political conversations.
Ian Cron says it well,
"The five most powerful words in the English language are: ...but I might be wrong."
And why are those words so important?
Because the only way you can possibly learn more is to doubt that you know everything. The only way to be open to new insights is to be open to the fact that the people you encounter might just know more than you do.
My children don't struggle to believe they might be wrong. I'm the one who struggles to believe I might be wrong.
Perhaps that's why Jesus said, "Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven." -Matthew 18:3 (NIV)
May you be filled with the right questions rather than the right answers.
May you be filled with just enough doubt to have faith.
Amen.
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