As members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, we try not to base our belief in God on historical proof, factual evidence, or other people's thoughts and opinions. Rather, it is an individual experience for each member to gain a testimony for themselves. Like it reads in Hebrews 11:1, faith is the "substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." Our faith and belief in God and many other things doesn't come from things which are "seen".
However, I believe things which are seen can be a source of light and help in understanding the things of God. In fact, I remember a seventh-grade classmate asking our science teacher if he believed in God. His response has been stuck in my head until this day: "Studying science has made me believe in God. I look at the earth, life, and everything within it, all working together in perfect harmony. This wasn't created on its own. There has to be a God. "
I had an experience recently that made me think about those words, "there has to be a God." Four months ago I was involved in an accident while Zorbing (look it up) and ended up in the hospital with a broken humerus in my right arm. After taking X-rays and MRIs, surgery was performed. I left the hospital the next day with a metal plate and ten screws in my arm, and the encouragement from the doctor that I would be fully recovered in six months.
Four months have passed and I've been through a lot of pain and intense physical therapy. I've learned a lot about the anatomy of the upper arm and shoulder, and all the bones, muscles, tendons, tissues, and nerves that work together in perfect harmony to allow me to use my arms. It's fascinating! Through all of the physical therapy and strength training I've made considerable progress and I've been able to use my arm more and more in everyday activities. I've been excited to see the progress I've made.
But my arm still isn't quite the same as it was.
I still have some nerve damage around my wrist that feels funny whenever I touch it, and sometimes stings and gets cold easily. I still have weird pops and clicks in my wrist, elbow, and shoulder, and the doctor says I'll definitely have tendonitis growing up. My right elbow still doesn't hyperextend as far as my left one. And I'm still missing some range of motion in the more extreme upper degrees. Some of these things will never totally resolve. The doctor's idea of a full recovery was that I would be able to do everyday things without a problem, not necessarily that my arm would return back to its original state.
But here's what has been on my mind: While I was in that operating room four months ago, heavily sedated, I had professionally trained surgeons with decades of combined experience sticking their fingers in my arm and, bit by bit, piecing it back together. These are men who went through years of school to learn about every bone and every muscle in the human body and how they work together with precise detail. They know every part of the human body and how it all works together better than anyone on earth. But even still, they weren't able to put me back together the way I was formed in my mother's womb.
Sure they did a great job! I'm amazed at the ability of these trained doctors to work on something so intricate as my arm and recover me from such a serious accident. And I'm grateful for those who study to be able to do that. It truly is a miracle. But think about it. Over the last 24 or so years, I've grown from a tiny microscopic egg into a fully functioning human being, with bones, muscles, nerves, tendons, and thousands of organs in my body that work together perfectly to allow me to perform everyday activities. But after breaking one of those pieces, not even some of the smartest humans on earth were able to put me back together with exactness the way my mother made me, or rather, the way God did.
There has to be a God. And I believe in Him not because of factual evidence or historical proof. I believe in Him not because I broke my arm and learned that He is the only one that could have created me the way He did. I believe in Him because I've felt His love and been guided by His Spirit. I know that He lives and loves every one of His children on the earth. He is all knowing and all powerful. And I know that it is only through Him, and through the Atonement of His son, Jesus Christ, that we can all truly be put back together again.
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