Doubters

“But he said to them, ‘Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe it” John 20:25.

Over the past couple months our daughter Caroline has been involved with a company whom she wishes to obtain employment.  It is a great company that offers many benefits and future opportunities in her field.  She left each interview encouraged that it was moving in the right direction.  As time passed with no response her mind would always settle on discouragement and doubt.  As long as she was in their presence she was encouraged, but discouraged when she wouldn't hear from them.  Yesterday she finally got the call with the information regarding her start date and her salary.  I watched her as she asked them to repeat the salary for fear that she heard them wrong.  They repeated it a second time.  After the phone call she still doubted she heard them correctly and would not allow herself to get excited until she saw with her own eyes the email with the written amount.  She has yet to receive that email…our little doubting Thomas not only requires hearing the amount but also seeing the amount in writing before her doubt is removed.

I always felt sorry for Thomas since his name is associated with his doubt.  In considering Thomas this morning, I felt confident that God used him just as the other disciples to accomplish great things so I researched him and was blessed with the results.  ‘God performed many miracles through Thomas to help the people with whom Thomas shared the Gospel message -- in Syria, Persia, and India.’ Whitney Hopler, former About.com Guide.  Although he performed many miracles the Bible highlights his doubt.  I am confident this is because we as believers need multiple confirmations when following Jesus.  We need to have that second ultrasound to calm our fears.  We need to check on our baby several times through the night to see their safety.  We need to run the numbers a few times to assure our doubts that we are on target for a financial goal.  We need to see the email to confirm we heard correctly.

Many times our doubts are just a way of protecting or preparing our hearts for something to come.  Instead of Thomas doubting because of a weakness I am blessed to consider that, like Caroline, it just seemed too good to be true.  Thomas was already heartbroken from Jesus’ death so dare he open his heart to something so wonderful…so glorious…so impossible?  Christ gave Thomas what he needed that day and as a result Thomas showed us that sometimes those with great faith also need God’s reassurances.