Based On The Evidence

Based on the Evidence

Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD.

Isaiah 1:18 (KJV)

Ratiocination is the process of exact thinking or of thinking things through using reason. And although I am a left-brained, logical sort myself, I am not as adept at exact thinking as one man I heard about.

Because the people of France appreciate logical thinking, the works of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle are greatly admired in that country. Sir Arthur once taxied from the train station to his hotel in Paris, and as he left the cab, the driver said, “Mercí, Monsieur Conan Doyle.”

“How did you know who I am?” asked Doyle curiously.

The taxi driver explained his logical deduction: “There was a notice in the paper that you were arriving in Paris from the south of France. I knew from your general appearance that you were an Englishman. It is evident that a barber of the south of France last cut your hair. By these indications I knew you. It was really quite simple, don’t you see?”

“That is absolutely extraordinary, my good man. You had no other evidence upon which to go?” asked Doyle with fascination.

“Nothing,” said the driver with a mischievous grin, “except the fact that your name is on your luggage.”

We human beings seem to apply ratiocination to most things in life except politics and religion. When it comes to those topics, we tend to think with our hearts instead of with our heads. And yet God is the author of logic and reason. It is entirely reasonable, for instance, that God created the world with all its intricate workings and wonders rather than our world resulting from some big explosion. In fact, I believe it takes a lot more faith to be an atheist than it does to believe in God. God invites us to think logically with him, and that logic will surely lead us to right conclusions and actions.

O God, we know that you are the creator of life and of our world. And although it makes logical sense to me, I also accept it with my heart, Father, because I love you so much. Amen.