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I was listening to a young woman who grew up with a strong, Christian trust in God, describing how she left that faith. Those who believe that she must not have been a true Christian to begin with have only to look around to see many who have fallen away. She said that this process began with theology professors teaching her to do critical thinking (deconstruction) concerning everything that she believed. Later on, when she could not figure out certain adverse situations that she faced, she decided that the Christian faith did not have all the answers. Then she chose to be 'true to her self' and taught herself to rely on what was meaningful to her. The result was that she gave up her faith.

This was sad to listen to, because I knew there were answers to the questions she was facing, but she did not seek the right people to get those answers. Rather, she trusted her own understanding and insight and considered them to be sufficient to help her to make her life choices. On the other hand, God's word tells us, "Trust in the LORD with all your heart And do not lean on your own understanding" (Pr.3:5). Her limited knowledge and ability restricted her from getting the answers that were yet beyond her. If only she realised that her own limitations should draw her beyond herself to God, she could have been safe. God has His teachers, apologists, counsellors, etc., to help us in such situations.

Deconstruction is good to a point. It helps us to ask questions and get clear about what we believe. It is especially helpful when we have to deal with all kinds of faiths and doctrines that are all around us. But then we must have a foundation on which we can stand, without which we are going to be totally unstable. Think of the scientists who are trying to discover the origin of the universe. When they make an assumption that their understanding must be only based on natural facts, and thus leave God out of the picture, their conclusions become very unstable – any theory they find gets disproved and they keep looking for another without reaching any certainty. If, instead, they directed their efforts to understand the things God has created, they could have been more successful.

If we can accept the fact that we are created beings with many limitations who cannot ever fully find explanations for everything, we can also learn to leave what we cannot understand, to God. We also accept that God has also not chosen to reveal in the Bible all the answers we are looking for. Then, instead of assuming that if we cannot get the answer to some questions, we cannot believe the Bible itself, and going further and giving up on God Himself, shall we not humble ourself and start by believing what the Bible has actually revealed? That is enough to introduce us to God the Creator and Jesus the Saviour. If we allow that knowledge to become our foundation, we can look for further answers. Even if we don't get answers, we can still cling to God!

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