In Theory

It is not my job to persuade anyone of anything. Jesus said that my job is to love in such a way that my life is so compelling that others would want to live that life as well. Thatâ??s what He did, and that is what I try to do, not very good sometimes. So the proof is not intellectual, but relational. My only doubts are if I am truly able to love that way. Godâ??s love is so obvious. Someone said to me this morning there are too many colors for their not to be an artist.

Ric Olsen

Lead Pastor, The Beacon

Though Iâ??ve experienced or witnessed events that have been difficult to accept, I do not believe Iâ??ve ever doubted the existence of God. There are too many solid reasons to believe that our existence is not some random act of nature, but that indeed God is the primary cause. Yet if I do struggle with something that I cannot make sense of, I often utter â??Lord I believe, help my unbeliefâ? as found in Mark, 9:24. We do not know the mind of God.

Fr. Stephen Doktorczyk

St. Joachim Church of Costa Mesa

Doubt is â??the â??ants in the pantsâ?? of faith.â? Doubts keep faith awake and moving. As Frederick Buechner writes in â??Wishful Thinking,â? â??Whether your faith is that there is a God or that there is not a God, if you donâ??t have doubts you are either kidding yourself or asleep.â? In times of sureness and doubt about the God of our salvation, I keep daily discipline of prayer upon awaking, before sleeping, and at least once in between. Eventually, prayer brings me home to myself and to God.

The Very Rev. Canon Peter D. Haynes

St. Michael & All Angels Episcopal Church of Corona del Mar

Most people in America, I am told, believe in a higher power. Not everyone, however, believes in a God that would favor one person over another. This is why I teach my congregation that God is universal, infinite and creative intelligence. Until I understood this, I was not convinced in the consistency of Godâ??s presence. No matter how hard I tried to control the outcome there didnâ??t seem to be a God willing to take my side when things got difficult. Then I started to study philosophy and I was introduced to a different view point. It was refreshing to see God as the great impersonal power that animated my beliefs and gave me choice and initiative. I changed my mind about life and saw it has the consequence of what I believed and what I thought about all day long. I learned how to pray in a way that helped strengthen my faith, improve my choices and expand my opportunities to grow. Prayer is the answer.

Pastor Jim Turrell

Center for Spiritual Living, Costa Mesa

I see my job as less about â??persuading people to believe in God,â? and more about experiencing God, coming together as community, and acting as Godâ??s vehicle of love, transformation, peace and justice here on Earth. My job is more about interpretation, action and experience than it is about conversion. Over the years Iâ??ve had to define and redefine my theology as I come to understand God differently. For example, as a child I may have understood God as an anthropomorphic deity, whereas over time, I have come to understand Godâ??s omnipresence as more of a force, spirit or energy than a man. I believe that as Iâ??ve questioned my faith, Iâ??ve deepened it. The more I struggle the more I find what I can assert, what I can discard and no longer believe, and what I must leave up to the mystery of the divine. I do not believe that doubt itself is a bad thing. My faith has persevered through doubt, in spite of doubt, and sometimes even because I allowed myself the opportunity to doubt. Ultimately, it is my own personal experience of a God that loves and so calls me to live that love embodied that is what allows this faith to persevere.

The Rev. Sarah Halverson

Fairview Community Church

I was not raised in a religious home and was not sure about the existence of God. At the age of 20 I accepted Jesus Christ as my personal Lord and Savior and was born again. For 39 years I have feasted upon His word, spoken daily to Him through prayer and the doubts have dissolved as our relationship grows deeper and sweeter!

Pastor Dwight Tomlinson

Liberty Baptist Church of Newport Beach

Despite my parentsâ?? best intentions, I was an atheist before I hit college. Courses in history had revealed the terrible things done in Godâ??s name. College classes in philosophy, history and psychology only reinforced my atheism. I was challenged that if I was going to oppose Christianity I ought to learn what Christianity stood for.

I discovered Jesus did not claim to be a teacher, spiritual guide, wise man or prophet. He claimed to have the same power and character as God. So did he or didnâ??t he? The proof is the resurrection. If Jesus was raised up, he is still a living presence. So why not engage in a game of double dare. Iâ??ll believe in you if you show up, put in a personal appearance, drop by for a chat. Obviously, Jesus showed up. Thatâ??s an even longer story.

Let me end with a warning and a blessing. Do not engage in a double dare with Jesus unless you are ready for him to actually play your game. I have done this often, and always lose. But there is a blessing. I found it in the back of Johnâ??s Gospel. The disciple Thomas doubts the Easter story. When Jesus showed up to answer his doubts, Thomas was not reprimanded. In fact, Jesus blessed Thomas for his doubts. Doubts are the beginning of faith. After all, if I had never been an atheist, I would never have been a Christian pastor.

Pastor Mark Wiley

Mesa Verde United Methodist Church of Costa Mesa

The opposite of faith is certainty. A person who claims to know with utter sureness the mind or will of God is pathological. As Susan B. Anthony said: â??I distrust those people who know so well what God wants them to do because I notice it always coincides with their own desires.â?

The uncertainties, fears and reservations of the characters who populate the Bible are on full display, serving to highlight their faith. Like Job, I have questions about God and questions of God, but I have no question that God is.

Rabbi Mark S. Miller

Temple Bat Yahm of Newport Beach

I went to a small Methodist congregation. From as young as I can remember, I had an inclination toward the belief in a creator. As my life progressed, that attraction became more firmly entrenched and continues to grow. My experiences in climbing some of the challenging mountains in the world have enhanced this belief that there is a God who cares about His children. I am grateful every day for the beauty which surrounds us.

Tom Thorkelson

Director of Interfaith relations for Orange County

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints