Welcome to being normal.  This Sunday we have the Gospel account that gave us “doubting Thomas”.  I don’t believe that Thomas really doubted, but I do believe that he questioned.  There is a difference.

Having questions about the existence of God are part of being a normal human being.  If you know of someone who has never doubted the existence of God or never wondered why things happen the way they do, there are three possible reasons for this person’s faith:

1.       They are a person of extraordinary faith such that they are on equal footing with some of the greatest saints and they surpass even the average saint in their faithfulness.

2.      They are a person of extraordinarily poor introspection, wherein they don’t really think much about what they think or why they think it.

3.      They are a person of extraordinary untruthfulness.  They somehow hold having a questioning faith to be so low that they won’t admit to having questions themselves.

Many people question many things about God and most of us, at one time or another wonder whether God really exists or not.  That is a natural consequence of living in this fallen world.  Most of us, in times of stress and loss, wonder how God could allow terrible things to happen to the people that He loves.  Many times those events cause a crisis of faith in an individual.  That is one of the reasons that membership in a church community is so important.  When we are surrounded and supported by people of faith, we are helped to see and understand some of the more difficult lessons of faith and life through our fellowship.  People who do not have a church family that they can call on have a lot fewer resources to call on in times of stress and questioning.  Their path through life will be more difficult and often those poor people will remain separated from God for many years.

When your mind turns toward questioning God, invite a church friend over for a cup of coffee and talk about it.  Or you can call your pastor or priest; he has lots of experience with faith issues.  The main thing is to reach out into the community that God put you into.  That’s why he put you there; to find support and to be support for others.