Have you ever doubted your faith? Wondered if God isn’t real? I dealt with this issue a couple of decades ago and wondered how I could go on doing “all the things” while struggling with doubt. Today I want to share a fascinating story about how an elephant can be similar to testing our faith.
Listen to I Almost Walked Away: How Questioning God Led to a Stronger Belief with Carol Roper
To see photos of Eades Bridge, watch on YouTube I Almost Walked Away: How Questioning God Led to a Stronger Belief with Carol Roper
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Transcript
“When you come looking for me, you’ll find me.
“Yes, when you get serious about finding me and want it more than anything else, I’ll make sure you won’t be disappointed.” God’s Decree ~ Jeremiah 29:13-14 The Message
Several years ago, my son, Jacob, and I were watching the History channel’s documentary The Men Who Built America, Part 2. We’re both fascinated with history and were engrossed in the story of Andrew Carnegie. His rise to fortune was brought about through major technological innovations that made steel suitable for manufacturing structural beams. He’s also credited with implementing new mass-production solutions in the steel industry. Because of his innovation, Carnegie was asked by James Eades, a civil engineer, to provide steel for construction of the longest bridge ever built at that time, just over a mile. After studying its use in smaller projects in Europe, Eades was convinced it would work. This would be the first time in history steel would be used on such a large-scale project, spanning the mighty Mississippi River in St. Louis, Missouri to East St Lois, Illinois.
There were, however, several large obstacles to overcome. Attempts had already been made several times to build a bridge in that same spot, each one failing. Also, steel was a fairly new material and no one, not even Carnegie, was sure the bridge could sustain the span or the weight of vehicles traveling across. Carnegie even suggested iron be used instead of steel. And if that wasn’t enough, at that time in the late 1860’s, one in four bridges built failed. These factors contributed to the fear that Eades Bridge couldn’t be trusted. No one wanted to test its integrity by taking a step of faith to cross. Eades, however, had designed the bridge in such a way that he knew it wouldn’t fail, even though it had never been done before.
Finally, in 1874, after seven years of construction and a large investment by Carnegie, the men decided something outlandish needed to be done to bolster people’s faith in their ‘magnificent’ bridge. A popular myth of the day was that elephants wouldn’t cross unstable structures, so they arranged to have one walk across the bridge on opening day. Eades faith was so strong, he also parked fourteen fully loaded locomotives on the bridge at the same time.
It worked. Eades Bridge finally connected east and west like never before and steel orders from across the country flooded in.
This story reminds me of a time when I doubted my faith in God. As a busy wife and mother in my early thirties, teaching Sunday School and being involved in numerous other church activities, I was exhausted. Doubts increasingly began to creep into my mind.
As I sat in my car one evening after returning home from yet another church meeting, questions started whirling in my head. What if this isn’t real? What if there is no God and I’ve been wasting all my time for nothing? Why on earth should I believe God is real and that Jesus’ story isn’t something a crazy person just made up?
Despair overwhelmed me as I thought about the possible futility of my faith. I couldn’t keep following and serving a God I wasn’t 100% sure existed. I didn’t want my beliefs to be built on something that fell apart under the weight of my unbelief. So, I prayed out loud and gave all of my questions to Him, ending my prayer with a request.
“God, if you really exist and everything I’ve built my faith on is true, prove it. Reveal yourself to me in ways that could only be you. I’ll be watching. Amen”
One of my biggest regrets is not writing down all the things God did to make Himself known to me over the next period of weeks. I only remember repeatedly being shown His omnipotence, omnipresence and omniscience, and my faith was restored. When I doubted the bridge of faith that brought me to Christ, God proved it was more than strong enough to walk across.
God is big enough—big enough for my questions, big enough for my doubts and big enough to handle it all. So often we think it’s wrong to question God. Those questions, however, can lead us to a stronger faith.
I know for certain I was saved at the time I questioned God. But I wanted to experience Him in more tangible ways. I wanted to know that I’d built my faith and hope on a God who was real and true. Because I was brave enough to ask, God was gracious enough to answer. One of His greatest joys is revealing Himself after we’ve asked for His presence to be made known in our lives.
Lee Strobel is an intellect and former atheist who set out to prove the Christian faith was a myth. Instead, he became one of its strongest supporters. He wrote the well-known book, The Case for Faith: A Journalist Investigates the Toughest Objections to Christianity, because he wanted to share his findings with other non-believers and doubters.
In his book, Lee states: “Only in a world where faith is difficult can faith exist.”
Amen.
C.S. Lewis, author of the popular Narnia series, tried to disprove Christianity as well. Even though he grew up in the faith, he fell away in later years. Like Strobel, he also unsuccessfully rebuffed Christianity and became one of the most popular Christian authors ever, using much symbolism about the strength and love of our God and Savior. The book, Surprised by Joy, was his response to discovering the truth about God and His character.
And in Gary Parker’s book, The Gift of Doubt he says, “If faith never encounters doubt, if truth never struggles with error, if good never battles with evil, how can faith know its own power? . . . In my own pilgrimage, if I have to choose between a faith that has stared doubt in the eye and made it blink, or a naive faith that has never known the firing line of life, I will choose the former every time.”
After the magnificent bridge across the mighty Mississippi opened, James Eades was asked to share his thoughts on the momentous occasion:
“Yesterday, friends expressed to me their pleasure at the thought that my mind would be relieved after testing the bridge. But I felt no relief, because I felt no anxiety on the subject.”
Wow. May we all demonstrate the faith of James Eades in his bridge as our source of strength is so much greater than anything man can fathom to create.
So, friend, if you’re questioning your faith today, don’t let it stop you from asking God to reveal Himself to you. He’s big enough to handle all our questions and doubts. The God of the universe and Creator of all things good is qualified to handle any fears you have. Let Him be the elephant that walks across the bridge to build your faith. Just remember to write it all down so you won’t forget 😉
By the way, Eades Bridge still stands strong 152 years later.
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Remember, don’t give up when your faith feels fragile. Don’t give in. Keep building strong and showing up, praying the small prayers, and believing that God is big enough for your doubts and your hopes. Thanks so much for listening. I’ll see you next week!