“But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what they have done has been done in the sight of God” (John 3:21, NIV).

I sat on his bed, my arm around him. I had once been his doctor, but he called me to come as friend. He is a deeply devoted follower of Christ who was going through a rough time in his illness, thinking that he soon might be leaving this world. “I have been so blessed by such a wonderful wife and children. Knowing that my children love the Lord is such a blessing.” Though he probably has some time left on this side of glory, I attempted these words to comfort him: “You surely have been blessed in this life, but the blessing does not stop here. All of us are going to be together for all times with the Lord and with those we love, once this little speck of time we know as life has passed.” “I hope so,” he said. “I surely hope so.” I added, “The evidence is overwhelming. Besides that, the Lord Himself is here to assure us.”

Even the most devoted followers of Christ sometimes shift from “I know” to “I hope so.”

There is no faith without some possibility that we are wrong, some possibility that our trust in Jesus is based on hope and not fact.

How do we finally settle the issue and then live a life based on solid conviction?

There is a beautiful song out these days, sung by Josh Baldwin:

“I see the evidence of Your goodness
All over my life, all over my life.
I see Your promises in fulfillment
You cover my life; you cover my life…

See the cross, the empty grave
The evidence is endless
All my sin, rolled away
Because of You, oh Jesus…

Why should I fear?
The evidence is here.
Why should I fear?
The evidence is here.”

Our faith is not blind faith. We “see through a glass darkly,” but we see.

The longer I live, the more rational my faith becomes, based on evidence.

In these CMDA devotions over the last 12 years, we have recorded more than 600 events where God has broken into our concrete world, “with evidence of His goodness.” And we can multiple these stories by those of thousands of fellow Christians who have experienced God stepping into their lives over and over again. I would be a fool to ignore such a large body of evidence.

On top of this evidentiary mountain rests the empty tomb, the rise of shattered disciples who were willing to give their lives for a non-lie, and the very presence of Christ in my life every day.

Each of us will pass through moments where we are not certain of our faith. But, if we step back and examine the evidence, it would be irrational to let go of Jesus and grab the world.

Dear Father,
Help me see the truth of life.
Amen