Either we are alone in the universe—or we are not. Both ideas are overwhelming. That was the caption beneath a poster of deep outer space I once saw taped in a high school hallway. It captures the weight of the question: Is there a God, or not?

For many, the idea that we might be alone—that there is no God—creates unease. If there is no God, then life is an accident of physics and chemistry, with no larger meaning. On the other hand, if there is a God, then everything changes. The stakes could not be higher.

What Counts as “Reasonable Proof”?

When people wrestle with God’s existence, they often want proof. But what kind of proof is enough? In law, there are two standards of proof:

• Preponderance of the evidence in civil cases—the claim is more likely true than not
• Beyond a reasonable doubt in criminal cases—the highest standard, even though it doesn’t eliminate all doubt

Notice that neither requires absolute certainty. Life rarely offers us that. Instead, wisdom means looking at the evidence and making a reasoned decision. The same is true when considering the existence of God.

The Idea of a Necessary Being

If you walked into your kitchen and saw a cake on the counter, you would never assume it appeared by itself. Someone put it there. Similarly, when we look at the world—our community, the earth, the solar system, the stars—there’s no reason it had to exist. And yet it does. That suggests it came from somewhere—that its existence was contingent on something or someone.

This intuition leads us to the idea of a necessary being—a being whose existence does not depend on the existence of other things. Philosophers from Aristotle onward have reasoned toward an “Uncaused Cause,” an eternal reality that gives rise to everything else. Most people call that reality “God.”

I remember lying in the grass one night in college, staring at the stars. The sky was dazzling, immense. Suddenly I felt my smallness, my contingency. In that moment it dawned on me: For this to exist, it is necessary for God to exist.

Even people who have been raised under atheistic regimes have testified to this sense. When the Soviet Union collapsed, one high-ranking official remarked, “All these years they told us there is no God. But we have always known that was not true. They erased Him from our schoolbooks but not from our memory.”

What Creation Reveals About Its Creator

Like a painting reflects its artist, creation reflects something about its Creator. Consider:

• Earth is astonishingly hospitable in an otherwise hostile universe.
• Every culture in history has a sense of morality: “I ought” and “I ought not.” This points to a moral Creator.
• Human experiences of gratitude, love, and beauty suggest a giver behind the gifts.

English writer and theologian Julian of Norwich once imagined holding all creation in her hand like a hazelnut. She sensed God telling her, “This is all that ever has been created.” The cosmos is vast, but the One who holds it must be greater still.

Occam’s Razor—the idea that the simplest explanation is usually best—applies here. Creation exists. Life exists. The simplest explanation is that there is a Creator.

As Paul wrote in Romans 1:20: “For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made …”

Pascal’s Wager

But what if you still doubt? Seventeenth-century mathematician Blaise Pascal suggested a wager. Everyone must bet one way or another: God exists, or He doesn’t.

• If you bet God exists and you’re right, you gain everything—eternal life and infinite joy. If you’re wrong, you lose nothing you wouldn’t have lost anyway.
• If you bet God does not exist and you’re right, you gain nothing you didn’t already have. But if you’re wrong, you lose everything.

Reason alone, Pascal argued, makes belief the more logical wager.

Faith and Logic Together

The question for us is not whether absolute proof for God exists. It doesn’t, just as is true for anything that matters most in life. The question is: Which belief system best fits the evidence? We’ll continue exploring the answer to that both here and in the weekly Bible study as we continue in this 10-week series adapted from my book What If Christianity Is True? But for now—

The truth is belief in God is not a blind wager at all. It is rooted in observation, intuition, and reason. But, ultimately, God has chosen not to overwhelm us with coercive evidence. Instead, He invites us to faith.

Much love,

Pat

For Reflection and Discussion

1. Have you ever had a moment when you were suddenly struck by the idea of a necessary being—that God must exist? Describe it.
2. What standard of proof do you personally require to believe in God? Is “beyond a reasonable doubt” enough for you?
3. The universe exists. There’s a “cake on the counter.” Which seems more reasonable to you: requiring proof that there is a Creator, or requiring proof that there is not?
4. How does Pascal’s Wager strike you? If everyone must bet, what’s your bet right now—and why?