WE CAN BELIEVE JESUS

Keyword BELIEVE (verb): to regard as right or true; to have a firm or wholehearted conviction, trust

Then Jesus told him, “You believe because you have seen me.

Blessed are those who believe without seeing me.” John 20:29 NLT

I really want to believe Jesus.

And I bet you do, too.

But we haven’t ever actually seen him, and occasionally we start to question. Is Christianity just like any other religion? Is Jesus really who he says he is? How can we be sure?

Sometimes I think it is easier to believe IN Jesus than it is to actually believe HIM.

I was a young Christian when I went through my first spiritual “dry spell.” I was volunteering at an outreach camp where everyone seemed to be experiencing God in exciting and tangible ways– except for me. All of us had come to Malibu because of our love for Jesus and our desire to serve him. We sang and studied talked about Jesus as we worked. I couldn’t understand it. Here I was in this amazing Christian environment, yet I could not feel his presence at all. I prayed and cried and waited, but for days and days nothing changed.

Was he really a God who wanted a relationship with me?  Or was it all just wishful thinking?

It took time to feel God’s presence again. More time than I would have liked. Time walking quietly along the path next to the deep blue inlet, time sitting on a rock looking high up at the snow-tipped mountains, time reading my Bible and writing in my journal, and time whispering prayers of frustration as I lay awake in my bunk. I realize now that it was just the right amount of time for him to strengthen my faith in a very significant way. He taught me through this that he is constant and faithful, even when my thoughts and feelings are not.

When it is hard to believe Jesus, he understands. But he wants us to keep trying, keep trusting no matter what we see or hear or feel. When his time on earth was done, he gave us his Spirit to help us in our times of doubt. He knew we would need it.

And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate who will never leave you. He is the Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth. John 14:16-17 NLT

His Spirit helps us find him in his WORDS

When Jesus seems far away, we can open our Bibles and find his truth. He will help us to understand more and more as we spend time meditating on a verse, a story, or a chapter.

His Spirit helps us find him in his WORKS

When we start to doubt his presence, we can look around. His creative and redemptive power is everywhere. We can find him in a twinkling star on a dark night, in the precious sound of a baby’s laugh, in the refreshment of a cool breeze on a hot day, and in every morning sunrise.  We can remember and celebrate what he has done in our lives and in the lives of those we love.

Dear Jesus, thank you that you never leave me alone. Your presence surrounds me whether I feel it or not, and your Spirit reminds me of your words and your works. Please help me to believe you with all my heart. Amen.