Leah Libresco Sargeant was an atheist who found the arguments for God too strong to resist.
Since 2012, she has been one of us–a believer.
The question that moved her from disbelief to faith was this one: “How is it we come to know truth?” She couldn’t reconcile the notion of no God with the idea of man-made morality, moral laws originating within people.
Moral law transcends people. It comes from outside them, not from within them.
For where did moral law come from if not from God?
Her acknowledgment of truth as something that transcends humanity emerged from the study of C.S. Lewis, G.K. Chesterton, and Augustine.
It was a process–one that took time–of reconciling what she grew up with–an assumed atheism–with truth, what she came to understand through study. Eventually, the truth of God became obvious to her.
Libresco Sargeant’s journey was an intellectual one. Not everyone who believes takes such a path to faith.
My own journey wasn’t nearly as intellectual as Libresco Sargeant’s was. My path certainly had nothing to do with mathematics as hers did.
But I assumed truth. Not that I knew all of it, just that I knew it existed.
I didn’t realize until later that I had begun by presuming truth.
When we come to faith, we arrive at truth–and perhaps we’ve reached the center, the bull’s eye circle. We’re standing in it, but there is always more to know, more to seek. There is always a journey toward a better understanding of God.
We spend the rest of our lives trying to find and inhabit that center. Every day, we move closer to truth–or of our own wills–further away.
Others who aren’t standing near us are on their own journeys to the truth. How quickly they arrive at the big circle of faith may depend on us.
And how close we are to the center of the bull’s eye may depend on how well we treat those not standing right next to us.
We all have a different faith journey. I am thankful to those people who God has placed in my life to lead me closer to Him.
It’s wonderful to look back on your own journey to see God’s leading and provision along the way. Thanks, Melissa; God bless!
Very thought provoking especially the part of how we treat others who have not yet reached the circle of faith. I hope I lead them in the right direction.
I hope I do too, Yvonne, Thanks and God bless!
As always, so insightful and filled with wisdom worth pondering. Arriving at truth is a unique journey for each of us, and, as you wrote, we all start at different places, though we’re often entirely unaware of where we stand regarding truth. “And how close we are to the center of the bull’s eye may depend on how well we treat those not standing right next to us.” Jesus nodded in agreement when you wrote that sentence.
Thank you, Melinda. There is a deep connection between truth and faith. God bless!
Our journeys to faith are as different as we are!
And yes, truth is not a thing, it is a Person!
He is truth, and we are so far from it–but inhabiting that circle where he abides changes us to become like him. Thanks, Ava. God bless!
Nancy, my coming to belief and faith was not necessarily based on an intellectual search for the origin of truth, even though my dad was an atheist. I just believed the message of the gospel in my heart to be truth, and a truth I needed along with a relationship with the heavenly Father. Thankfully my dad came to a personal belief and faith-I prayed for him for sixteen years. I hope to be closer to the center of the bull’s eye and treating well those who aren’t standing next to me.
There is only one way, but we navigate to Christ from various perspectives until we see truth. God has more than one way to call our spirits to his. Thank you, Karen, and God bless!
Love what you say about “how close we are to the center of the bull’s eye may depend on how well we treat those not standing right next to us.” Yes!
Thank you, Jessica. It’s sometimes hard to love those standing nearby. God bless!
How we yearn for Truth. And Jesus alone is Truth. Praying many more eyes will see.
Amen, Melissa. We need the truth. Thanks and God bless!
Great post. We are all on a journey, from ignorance to awareness, and sometimes, like turtles, we are moving very very slowly.
You’re right, Christopher. And it’s possible to move backward away from truth. Thanks for commenting. God bless!