Ask any faithful person to scientifically prove the existence of God and they will be hard pressed to do so – however ask them to deny their faith that God exists and they will fight you vehemently.

I’m reminded of the scene in my father’s favorite Christmas movie, The Santa Claus. Tim Allen (Santa) is speaking to an elf, Judy, about belief. Judy says “Believing is seeing…believers don’t have to see this place (The North Pole) to know that it’s here…they just know.”

Where does our knowing come from? All of us have beliefs, ones undoubtedly backed by either fact or experience and thus are those we will vigorously defend and espouse. The famed Jewish philosopher, Rabbi Eliezer Berkovits held the belief that our faith existence is solidified by our own encounter, our experience with The Divine. At some point in our lives, Berkovits says, all of us have experienced something, even just a moment, that has solidified our faith, strengthened our divine resolve and forged our faith with God.

If you look at The Bible; it’s laws and dictates, prophetical warnings and ethical writings one thing is abundantly clear – God cares about relationships. God cares about forging a bond with His Creation and coming closer in presence and in deed to fulfilling His will, by and through us, for His creation.

Think about a time in your life where you felt far away, lost, despondent or unheard. Then think about the catalyst for that which removed you from that exile and brought you close again. Life is a series of running and returning (Rebbe Nachman of Breslov). We will all be presented with experiences that bring us closer to God and solidify our faith.

What does your encounter look like?