There is a thing to be said about confidence.Really, one of the coolest aspects of growing up (for me) is that my confidence has been forced to grow up as well. I used to be terrified to have questions about Christianity, about the Lord, about the Bible.I was scared I would unearth something that would change my faith, change my understanding, change me.I was scared because I was afraid that one of the answers I sought would make Him untrue. I should have known that when fear is the major driver, the Lord is probably not in it. I remember asking an older person, as a kid, who gave birth to God. I don’t remember the answer I was given, but I remember feeling that I should not have asked that question.I remember feeling listless and unsatisfied with the thought that going to heaven meant we will be singing in choir forever and ever. I could barely stand 4 hours in church, talk less of eternity!But I remember never questioning.The problem with never questioning is that there is only one outcome: ignorance.The thing is God does not do ignorance. He said that we perish when we don’t know. (Hosea 4:6)I would never, ever, ever, ever, in a million years, be where I am today if I did not question. If I just buried the contrary way I was feeling and let it go. Don’t get me wrong. There are still many things I don’t understand yet, but I trust that God will explain it to me – either here on earth or when I see Him and bug Him with questions. 

” The problem with never questioning is that there is only one outcome: ignorance.

This past Saturday, I was reading Romans 9. Verse 18 says: “So you see, God chooses to show mercy to some, and he chooses to harden the hearts of others so they refuse to listen.”Well darn, I thought. How am I supposed to explain this, Lord?How do I counter a self-assured Twitter user who uses this verse to oppose Your goodness? How does this verse correlate with Your goodness?Wanna know what He said, read Part 2!