I’m a scientist, and
have occasionally been asked to explain how I reconcile my belief in God with
the evidence-based principles on which science is based. For me, my
belief in God is based on evidence. I have conducted many ‘experiments’
on God and His involvement in my life. Prayer, serving my fellow man,
participation in holy ordinances, and putting God and family first have all
been for me a series of experiments on the existence and nature of God, and how
he works with us on Earth. I have conducted other experiments in which I
tried unsuccessfully to convince myself that I could do wrong and still feel
right, leading to experiments on the power of Christ to take away my guilt.
I can understand completely why all of this could be looked at with a
healthy skepticism. Each of these experiments was really an experiment
inside my mind and heart. Most involved outward actions, but the outcomes
of these experiments were measured in feelings--peace, joy, fulfillment, love.
These are hard (impossible?) to measure objectively, but I am a Christian
because I have repeatedly found that following the teachings of Jesus Christ
have resulted in an increase in my ability to feel peace, serve others, and
have joy in my family. This isn’t the type of evidence that can be
isolated, distilled into a cause/effect relationship, and tested in a designed
experiment in a sterile lab, and Christians don’t have a monopoly on feelings
of peace and love--these can be found by all. But for myself, I am convinced.
I know there is a God, that He loves us, and that trying to draw closer
to Him has made my life better
-Ephraim
A few days ago our family (me, my
husband, our two young children) went on a Saturday morning hike. There
is nothing like a child to help you notice the small things, and we would pause
almost every ten feet or so to pick up a rock, look at a crinkly leaf, or watch
a caterpillar move. Though the hike took twice as long as planned, I was
nevertheless grateful for the small wonders that my children helped me notice…a
grove of tiny mushrooms, glittering crystals cemented in a rock, exposed tree
roots reaching fifty feet out from the tree.
Whenever I am out in the natural world,
and seeing beautiful things, I am reminded of the scripture in Alma chapter 30:
“All things denote there is a God; yea, even the earth, and all things that are
upon the face of it…do witness that there is a Supreme Creator.”
Later on that day we went to a museum
where we saw more wonders of the natural world… graceful and artistic sediment
flows in water currents; rocks that phosphoresce and glow under UV light; and
that strange and invisible force of magnetism.
Whenever I have experiences like these,
or whenever I read of new discoveries in science or health or other fields I
always end up marveling at the beauty and perfection of God’s creations.
Is there any end to the discoveries? Such wisdom and intelligence and
creativity and artistry!
This sense of wonder that I feel in
secular learning I also feel in spiritual learning. The more I read the
scriptures, and study the words of the prophets, and seek to understand the
doctrines of the gospel, the more I see the beauty and order, the pattern in
God’s plan. I am grateful to a loving Heavenly Father who has created so
many wonderful things for us to discover and learn, both secular and spiritual.
-Mandy
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