We all know someone that is always right, even when we know that they are wrong. Usually nothing we say or do can change their mind, even if the proof is right in front of their eyes. It can make you chuckle with disbelief at how blindly wrong they really are, or it can cause you to be saddened by their hardened heart.

Here is a perfect example. This happened to me last weekend as my daughter and I drove to North Myrtle Beach, SC. for a lacrosse tournament. Along the way, we encountered multiple car accidents that Google Maps rerouted us around because of long delays. As we got closer to the city, it got darker from the sun having set and heavy clouds. Then the weather turned to misty and hazy.

When I drive at night, I know the rules of high beam headlights and not to use them when there’s oncoming traffic or when there is a car ahead of you where your brights would cause a problem with them seeing. So when it’s dark with damp air, misting, and small pockets of fog floating across the highway were affecting my vision and therefore safety, I had to turn my brights on a couple of times for a few seconds just to see the left white line that identified the outside of the passing lane vs. the right lane. There were no cars approaching me, and the nearest one in front was about 4 seconds ahead. Now perhaps my windshield was a little fogged up, or maybe my eyes don’t do as well at night as they used to, but after the 2nd time of brief high beams, the car in front of me slowed down to let me pass. As I approached it, that’s when the State Trooper sign came to view. The moment I got past it, the lights when on, and I was pulled over. Karli my daughter had never been in this situation before, and was kind of freaking out.

The Trooper came to my window, and she said, “Ma’am, you were blinding me with your headlights. You did it twice! Don’t you know that’s not polite to keep turning your brights on? It hurts people’s eyes and affects their driving. License and registration please.” My response was, “I’m sorry ma’am, but the pockets of fog made it really hard to see the road, and I just had them on a few seconds to see better.”
She replied, “Ma’am, there is no fog. Its against the law to turn your high beams on when you’re behind other vehicles.” I said, “But yes, there were small pockets of fog…” She came back again with, “There is no fog tonight. If you can’t see, then slow down.” By now, my daughter is tugging at my arm and whispering to me to stop arguing with her. The trooper went back to her car to run my info. I asked Karli if she saw the fog, and she thought so, but she wasn’t the one driving. When the trooper returned, she told me it was a $150 traffic fine for turning brights on when behind someone, but that I was only getting a warning this time. Thank you.

The fact is, she didn’t see what I saw, even though we were on the same road at the same time. Her opinion differed from mine. And of course she was the Law, so her opinion mattered more than mine. I clearly saw the fog, but she flatly denied it.

This story leads me to the “There is no God” answer. While I believe that God is visible in everything He has created, others do not. Yet, His handiwork displays His nature. The wind represents the Holy Spirit, moving among us. The sun represent Jesus, who is the light in our lives. Rainbows remind us of God’s promises and miracles. The rain represents the blessing from God that causes growth. Cells, molecules and atoms represent the smallest details that God cares about, and His attention to detail. I could go on and on!

In spite of this remarkable detailed world we live on, many still doubt and refuse to believe that God even exists! If He doesn’t exist, then they aren’t responsible to anyone but themselves, and their life has no purpose or meaning. They deny what is right in front of them because: 1. their pride won’t allow them to see the truth and be subject to God’s laws, 2. the evil one has blinded their eyes, closed their ears, and hardened their hearts.

“The entire natural world bears witness to God through its beauty, complexity, design, and usefulness. No one should complain that God has left insufficient evidence of His existence and character; the fault is with those who reject the evidence.”
ESV Study Bible

For someone that cannot see past their pride or what science has taught them since childhood, there isn’t anything you can say or do that will change their mind. The evidence is right in front of them every day, and they will not see it or admit to it. We live on the same planet as the doubters, skeptics and atheists do, but maybe the difference is that God has chosen to open our eyes and soften our hearts and not theirs. For that we should be forever extremely thankful. For that, our heart’s desire should be to try our best to convince others of His existence by our lives being different than the rest of humanity’s way.  For that we should be imploring the Lord for the salvation of those that we know in our neighborhood, in school, at work, and yes, even those that have a major influence on our society. Pray for their eyes to be opened, their ears to actually hear the truth, and for their hearts to be softened by the love of God. If He has done so for us, then we ought to desire that for everyone else!

“The fool says in his heart, ‘There is no God’. They are corrupt, they do abominable deeds; there is none who does good.”
Psalm 14:1

“They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, due to their hardness of heart.”
Ephesians 4:18

“For His invisible attributes, namely His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse.”
Romans 1:20

“O Righteous Father, even though the world does not know you, I know you and these (disciples) know that you have sent me. I made known to them your name, and I will continue to make it known, that the love with which you have loved me, may be in them, and I in them.”
John 17:25-26

Food for thought: Do you have someone that you don’t know, like an actor or a singer, that you pray for? They have a big impact on the lives of millions, and they need Jesus too! Just maybe, the Lord will redeem them, and they in turn could speak boldly for Jesus!

Fun facts: Mistake Island, Maine is the foggiest place in the US. It receives annually 1,600 hours of fog. San Francisco, CA gets 2nd place in the US with an average of 108 days, and Cape Disappointment, WA gets 3rd place, with approximately 106 days of fog per year.

Photo by: Kari Wiseman – Girl faces sun