By: Rex Stump
Wauseon, Ohio
Years ago, I was crawling through a portion of Bowden Cave in West Virginia, called infinity crawl. With a clearance of 12-15 inches, crawling on my belly, with a head lamp as light, and it had been over 30 minutes … panic and doubt entered my mind.
There are moments in our spiritual journey when we feel alone, desperate for help, struggle in despair, and we ask ourselves, “How did I end up here? Will I make it?”
Jesus appeared to the disciples the evening after His resurrection. As He did so, their sorrow and their doubts dissipated.
Thomas, one of the twelve disciples wasn’t present in that encounter. Thomas replied, “I won’t believe it unless I see the nail wounds in his hands, put my fingers into them, and place my hand into the wound in his side.”
Did you see Thomas’s reaction! I won’t believe it, unless! Unless what? I see it, and I touch it! Can you relate? We hear all these stories about Jesus, and they are great, but we just want to experience it firsthand! We want to visibly see Jesus and touch Jesus.
Eight days later the disciples were together again, this time Thomas was with them. The doors were locked; but suddenly, as before, Jesus was standing among them. “Peace be with you,” he said. Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here, and look at my hands. Put your hand into the wound in my side. Don’t be faithless any longer. Believe!” Jn 20-26-27
In that moment, I believe he may have fell to his knees, shamefully dropping his head. “My Lord and my God!” Thomas exclaimed. Then Jesus told him, “You believe because you have seen me. Blessed are those who believe without seeing me.”
In that statement, Jesus points to the future, to this very day. “Blessed are those who believe without seeing me.” We’ve not visibly seen, but we believe! Jesus says, blessed are you!
Here’s a question that may help us understand his doubting. Why wasn’t Thomas with the other disciples after the crucifixion? We don’t know for sure, but I believe he isolated himself! He possibly barricaded himself, alone in a home. Here is what I know, isolation can lead to doubt.
Alone, isolated, we feel helpless, and vulnerable. When we feel doubt and discouragement swelling up within us, surround yourself with others who are godly encouragers.
Earlier I mentioned how doubt and panic set in, as I crawled through a portion of a cave. How did I press on? In my doubting moments, I remembered seeing a few men larger than me exit that same cave. I thought, if they can do it … so can I! If others can make it through tough times, so can I.
Along with that, I remembered my caving guide, Mike, would never take me into a dangerous situation, unless he believed I could handle it. He even told us before we entered that portion of the cave, “If you are claustrophobic, I want you near me.”
He wanted those who would struggle to be next to him. Here’s the truth, Jesus will never take us to a place in life where we are alone or where we will be destroyed. He promised to never leave us or forsake us. Truth.
Today, I encourage you … if you are doubting. Start believing. Thomas said “unless I see and touch, I won’t believe.” Let’s stop making all these demands on God before we choose to believe. It’s time to stop wavering in doubt and start believing the truth of Jesus!
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Rex Stump is the Area Director for the Fellowship of Christian Athletes and serves as a Pastor at True North Church in Wauseon, Ohio.