Lent 2010 #9 - Faith and Doubt

Psalm 27 (NRSV)

1 The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?
2 When evildoers assail me to devour my flesh— my adversaries and foes— they shall stumble and fall.
3 Though an army encamp against me, my heart shall not fear; though war rise up against me, yet I will be confident.

4 One thing I asked of the Lord, that will I seek after: to live in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord, and to inquire in his temple.
5 For he will hide me in his shelter in the day of trouble; he will conceal me under the cover of his tent; he will set me high on a rock.
6 Now my head is lifted up above my enemies all around me, and I will offer in his tent sacrifices with shouts of joy; I will sing and make melody to the Lord.

7 Hear, O Lord, when I cry aloud, be gracious to me and answer me!
8 "Come," my heart says, "seek his face!" Your face, Lord, do I seek.
9 Do not hide your face from me. Do not turn your servant away in anger, you who have been my help. Do not cast me off, do not forsake me, O God of my salvation!

10 If my father and mother forsake me, the Lord will take me up.
11 Teach me your way, O Lord, and lead me on a level path because of my enemies.
12 Do not give me up to the will of my adversaries, for false witnesses have risen against me, and they are breathing out violence.

13 I believe that I shall see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.
14 Wait for the Lord; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the Lord!

THOUGHTS:

The psalmist begins with such confidence:  I won't fear when my enemies come to eat my flesh! (verses 1-3)

Yet, it is the pleading that catches my attention today: the cry for graciousness and for an answer (verse 7) and the request to not be forsaken (verse 9).

One of the things I value about the Bible is that it affirms us even in our questions.  We see that even great people of faith like King David, to whom this psalm is attributed, can bounce between assuredness and doubt in the flicker of an instant. People sometimes call this type of moment a crisis-of-faith, but I think these times help to form our faith.  

This summer, it was pointed out to me that we can only have faith when we doubt.  Certainty doesn't require faith.  Doubt does.  In the words of my friend, Pastor Jay Gamelin: 

"Faith is the ants in the pants of your doubt."

So the next time you find yourself wrestling with faith and doubt, remember that they work together, and remember the goodness of God.  As you journey though life, "be strong and let your heart take courage; wait for the Lord!" (verse 14)

PRAYER:

Almighty God, our light and salvation, dispel our fears and comfort us when the world seems to be consuming us.  Allow us to sit at your feet, and to learn your ways.  In the name of Jesus the Christ we pray. AMEN.

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Thoughts by Ben Buss, Lutheran Campus Minister at George Mason University

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These devotions for young adults are provided by:

Lutheran Campus Ministry at George Mason University http://www.gmu.edu/org/lutheran

Lutheran Student Association at the University of Maryland http://terpconnect.umd.edu/~lutheran/lsa/

DC Young Adults http://www.dcyoungadults.org/

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Lent 2009: Sixth Sunday (Palm Sunday)

As mentioned previously, Sundays are not part of Lent, but rather always celebrations of the resurrection.  To mark this distinction, instead of my thoughts on scripture, here's some interesting stuff I've stumbled upon lately...

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"Every minute that the world emphasizes the power of God more than the love of God, it will be more inclined to use force.  Wherever we prize certainty more than we prize humility, we can expect to find ourselves more readily distinguishing between good people and bad people. ... And the more we do it, the more we lean toward punishing bad people for not being good, and trying to force bad people into becoming good people, as if force will work such magic, or as if we all had the same definition of good."  ~ Peter Marty (Grace Matters, 5/6/2007) 

"My address is like my shoes. It travels with me. I abide where there is a fight against wrong."  ~Mother Jones

"One aspect of serving others is listening to the call within to express your gifts—those talents you have that make you feel infinite when you are doing them. When we express those gifts, the Holy Spirit works through us in ways we may never know directly, touching the lives, hearts, and minds of others." Joanna Bates (environmental scientist, dancer, and writer)

"I have come to understand that strength, inner strength, comes from receiving love as much as it comes from giving it.  I think apart from the idea that I am a sinner and God forgives me, this is the greatest lesson I have ever learned.  When you get it, it changes you... God's love will never change us if we don't accept it." Donald Miller (in Blue Like Jazz)

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These devotions are provided by Lutheran Campus Ministry at George Mason University .  Feel free to share them with your friends!  For more information on our ministry and events, see http://gmu.edu/org/lutheran  

You can subscribe to these devotions by RSS or email from http://lentendevotions.blogspot.com