A Spiritual Quest - essay

As a layman I used to get confused, thankfully long ago, with reasoning on whether there be a God or not, the value of prayer or not, even the differences between evil and goodness. Now I have established through many years of life, convincing truths to follow.

Re God---if we compare fossils supposedly millions of years old to earth being created in six days and only 2,000 years old; what then? In God’s language the snap of a finger could easily be one or ten million years, so to my way of thinking, the adage about aging earth is not really relevant. In any case we will find the true answer to this one after we pass on. In the meantime, direct communication with God, through prayer, is very re-assuring to many of us.

Re Praying---in my case, I had a stroke in 1999, and do not doubt for a moment the combination of a great wife, an attitude of perseverance and an avalanche of prayers from family and friends, allowed me to reclaim most of my previous health. Rather than say, no to praying, I embrace any spiritual opportunity to my chest. I can declare it works, as I can now wiggle my toes, hold onto a cup of coffee and lean over to kiss my wife.

Re Evil vs Goodness:
Evil---sadness prevails in the hearts of too many, young and old. And it manifests itself through drug usage, robberies, and intimidation. It can take place on streets, in schools and homes. The end results are despair and self-accusations. Where did we go wrong? Is asked too often. For some reason, proper reasoning and self-discipline went on holidays.

Goodness---Why is it we meet some people who exude kindness, and human caring, even when it appears they should be upset or take on an offense? They make such good parents, husbands, co-workers, and a joy to be around. These people must have prayer as a foundation, something helping them decide right from wrong. Sound right?

© Richard L. Provencher