A Mirror Darkly
Discomfort in Uncertainty
Each of us wants to feel accepted and loved for who we are. When we are unable to feel that others understand us, we struggle to feel accepted or loved.
Uncertainty, therefore, about whether or not others really understand our thoughts and feelings, as we express them with our words and actions, can lead to insecurity, fear, and emotional distance between us and those we love. There is comfort in feeling understood, accepted, and loved, because these feelings are the foundations of human connection. Consequently, when these feelings are absent in our relationships, we experience discomfort.
“But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, without uncertainty or insincerity.”
James 3:17
God’s wisdom leads us to a place where uncertainty or insincerity are absent. In that place, we find confidence, authenticity, and peace.
Blessed Are Those Who Have Not Seen and Have Yet Believed
I have always liked St. Thomas. As a natural skeptic, I can relate to “Doubting Thomas.”
“Now Thomas, one of the twelve, called the Twin, was not with them when Jesus came. So the other disciples told him, ‘We have seen the Lord.’ But he said to them, ‘Unless I see in his hands the print of the nails, and place my finger in the mark of the nails, and place my hand in his side, I will not believe.’
Eight days later, his disciples were again in the house, and Thomas was with them. The doors were shut, but Jesus came and stood among them, and said, ‘Peace be with you.’ Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here, and see my hands; and put out your hand, and place it in my side; do not be faithless, but believing.” Thomas answered him, ‘My Lord and my God!’ Jesus said to him, ‘Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet believe.’”
John 20:24–29
On this side of death, we must have faith, rather than proof, that God’s promises are true, that Jesus was who He claimed to be, and that God will care for us in this life and the next.
All too often, it’s easy to let doubts and uncertainties creep in and undermine our ability to listen to God, feel His presence, and abide in His peace.
Understanding as We Are Understood
God sees and understands you, always. He accepts and loves you, too. It is we who fail to see and understand Him, who fail to recognize His stirrings in our hearts.
“For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall understand fully, even as I have been fully understood.”
1 Corinthians 13:12
On the other side of the veil of death, we will see and understand God as He sees and understands us. For now, however, our task ought to be to have not seen (i.e. have not seen or demanded proof) and yet to have believed in God and to have trusted him with everything and everyone we love — including ourselves!
Our need to be understood, accepted, and loved can be met by God, but in order for this to happen, we must have faith in His love and goodness. We must ask Him for His wisdom, which will lead us to a place where uncertainty and insincerity are absent, a place where we can find confidence, authenticity, and peace.
© 2021 Noel Bagwell. All Right Reserved.
