Book read by NFL receiver on the sideline goes viral

Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver A. J. Brown was seen reading a book on the sidelines during his team’s game with the Green Bay Packers last Sunday. It turned out to be a 2009 book titled Inner Excellence by Jim Murphy. The author had been a minor-league outfielder and baseball coach before studying sports psychology and writing the book.

It was a modest success and became the basis for Murphy’s career as a mental skills advisor for professional golfers. But when Brown was seen reading it, it went viral, including a profile in the New York Times. The phenomenon was also discussed in this week’s Culture Brief episode.

In the book, Murphy writes: “The greatest freedom you have is where to place your thoughts.”

I’m not sure this is our “greatest freedom,” but it is among them. And it highlights a vital part of successful living. As Marcus Aurelius noted, “The happiness of your life depends upon the quality of your thoughts.” Norman Vincent Peale added, “Change your thoughts and you change your world.”

Paul, therefore, exhorted us: “Whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things” (Philippians 4:8, my emphasis).

And Jesus gave us the definitive word on the importance of our thoughts:

What comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this defiles a person. For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false witness, slander. These are what defile a person (Matthew 15:18–20).

However, despite the value God places on our minds and the excellence of our thoughts, many have the misguided belief that the life of faith and the life of the mind are competitors, if not opponents. I remember a little boy’s definition, “Faith is believing what ain’t so.”

So, what does God believe about our beliefs? And especially about our intellectual questions and doubts?

“Has God forgotten to be gracious?”

In Genesis 15, we read, “The word of the Lᴏʀᴅ came to Abram in a vision: ‘Fear not, Abram, I am your shield; your reward shall be very great’” (v. 1). If God said this to you or me, I assume we would respond with humble gratitude. Not Abram: he immediately replied, “O Lord Gᴏᴅ, what will you give me, for I continue childless, and the heir of my household is Eliezer of Damascus?” (v. 2).

Did God strike him down for such insolence? Just the opposite: “Behold, the word of the Lᴏʀᴅ came to him: ‘This man shall not be your heir; your very own son shall be your heir’” (v. 4). Then God brought Abram outside and said, “Look toward heaven, and number the stars, if you are able to number them” (v. 5a). With this assurance: “So shall your offspring be” (v. 5b).

Abram’s is by no means the only significant faith question in Scripture. Consider these:

• “You who are of purer eyes than to see evil and cannot look at wrong, why do you idly look at traitors and remain silent when the wicked swallows up the man more righteous than he?” (Habakkuk 1:13).
• “Why, O Lᴏʀᴅ, do you stand far off? Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble?” (Psalm 10:1).
• “How long, O Lᴏʀᴅ? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me? How long must I take counsel in my soul and have sorrow in my heart all the day? How long shall my enemy be exalted over me?” (Psalm 13:1–2).
• “Has God forgotten to be gracious? Has he in anger shut up his compassion?” (Psalm 77:9).

And of course, the most famous question ever asked of the Father was cried by his Son on the cross: “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Matthew 27:46). This was asked verbatim a thousand years earlier by David in Psalm 22:1.

Since the sinless Son of God (Hebrews 4:15) asked this question, as did the one person God described as “a man after my heart” (Acts 13:22), we can know that asking hard questions of the Lord is not in itself sinful.

To the contrary, his word commands us: “Come now, let us reason together, says the Lᴏʀᴅ” (Isaiah 1:18). The Hebrew for “reason together” can be translated, “let us argue it out.” This is the direct invitation of God.

My story of faith and doubts

Nonetheless, it can seem that questions about God demonstrate a lack of faith in him. This was a problem for me for many years.

I grew up in a family that never went to church. My parents had both been active in churches growing up, but my father’s World War II experiences were so horrific that he did not attend worship services after returning home. As a result, over time I came to ask his faith questions as my own: Why is there war? Why does a good God allow suffering?

In addition, I learned enough science in school to ask how the Bible can be relevant to our technological society. And enough about world religions to wonder how Jesus can be the only way to heaven.

When I was invited to church at the age of fifteen, I was immediately attracted to the faith I saw in others. Over time, I asked how I could have what they had, and my Sunday school teacher led me to pray a salvation prayer, asking Christ to be my Lord. When I did, I somehow thought all my faith questions would go away. When they didn’t, I wondered if my salvation was real.

It took a long time to understand that faith is not the absence of doubts. If Jesus could cry out his doubts to his Father, so can I. To the contrary, asking hard questions is part of loving God with all our minds (Matthew 22:37). It is part of the story of some of God’s greatest servants, from Moses and David and Peter and Paul to great thinkers such as Augustine, Thomas Aquinas, Martin Luther, and on to the present.

Some of the greatest intellectuals of the last century have been people of deep faith. I’m thinking of J. R. R. Tolkien, C. S. Lewis, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Francis Schaeffer, and Francis Collins, among others. Alister McGrath holds three doctorates from the University of Oxford: one in molecular biology, another in theology, and a third in intellectual history. He is also a committed evangelical and a brilliant apologist.

Ross Douthat of the New York Times is soon to release his new book, Believe: Why Everyone Should Be Religious. He discussed it on our upcoming podcast (to be released February 5), making a compelling case for the reasonableness of faith. His fellow Times columnist David Brooks made waves with his recent column on his faith journey titled, “The Shock of Faith: It’s Nothing Like I Thought It Would Be.”

Five steps forward

What, then, should we do with our doubts?

One: Expect them.

If Jesus and David could experience them, so can we. Our finite, fallen minds cannot possibly comprehend the ways of an omniscient God. He reminds us, “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts” (Isaiah 55:9).

Our enemy will also try to make us question God’s word and ways (cf. Genesis 3:1), as will our skeptical, secularized culture. This should not surprise us: “The god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God” (2 Corinthians 4:4).

Two: Name them.

The only bad question is the one we won’t ask. Be specific about the doubts or issues at hand, stating them in a clear way to which you can then respond.

Three: Take them to Scripture.

Jesus responded to every one of Satan’s temptations by citing God’s word (Matthew 4:1–11). View your doubts through the prism of God’s word, not the other way around.

Four: Where doubts remain, consult God’s people.

God has called and gifted pastors, theologians, and apologists (those who defend the faith) to help his people love him with their minds and become equipped to serve him well (cf. Ephesians 4:11–13). Denison Forum exists as one such ministry; I hope our many writings on various faith questions can be helpful to you. Whether you consult our resources or not, ask God’s people to help you trust and serve God with trust and with joy.

Five: Take your next step of faith.

All relationships require a commitment that transcends the evidence and becomes self-validating. So, ask your questions and examine the evidence, then take a step into a relationship with your Lord. You’ll discover that he is the omnipotent, omniscient, omnibenevolent Father he promises to be. And you’ll be able to sing the familiar hymn with gratitude:

This is the promise and the invitation of God.