Last week I was at the airport waiting for my flight when I received a phone call. The call was from the airport gate informing me that I was about to miss my plane. I was relaxing at the time and my first response was incredulity. “No I am not about to miss my plane!” Then it was followed by logic: “How can I miss my plane when I am booked on the 7:35AM flight?” Followed by a quick check of my boarding pass: “Oh…”

This mental snapshot captures something that occurs in the spiritual life. First, we are confronted with truth and we are unwilling or unable to believe it (incredulity). Then we use some form of logic to argue against it. Finally, we attempt to reconcile our logic with some form of reference point.

The unwillingness to confront or believe something is simply an adult application of a child covering their eyes in an attempt to hide. It is a lazy excuse for not using our fearfully and wonderfully made mind. Health advertisers now understand that the only way to communicate the evidence of lung cancer is to shock people into a response. One of the amazing things about the Scripture is that God doesn’t have to shock us into responding to truth (although he most certainly can; Acts 8).

The second challenge—logic—has been seriously abused. By definition, logic is “reasoning conducted or assessed according to strict principles of validity.” In reality, our application of logic is nothing more than a few hastily scrawled sentences on the back of a serviette while waiting for dessert. It has more application to a Holden vs. Ford argument than a debate on eternal truth (I don’t know how a post-modernist can use logic at all).

Finally, the process of reconciling our version with the truth usually ends in two authors, myself and God. Do I want to do what I want to do or do I want to do what God wants me to do?

When I realised that I had made a mistake, I was left at the mercy of the Qantas staff who graciously shifted my ticket to the 7:35 flight. Beyond my incredulity and faulty logic, I had no ground to stand on. Thinking about the spiritual life, this is a powerful place to be in. No excuses. No faulty logic. May we apply ourselves to a simple faith and a willingness to hear and to obey.