I talk a lot about my deconstruction and I have even written several books about my experience. But I always struggle to remember when it began until a few days ago when I remembered the exact moment.
It was about 7 to 8 years ago. We had a fair amount of bikers in our church. It was one of the keys to our growth. One of the bikers had invited a group called Bikers Against Trafficking to hold a mini conference at our church. It was a very good, raw experience that raised awareness and shook up our little church and community.
But the most striking thing about the conference was the woman who was with the director that was giving testimony about her experience of being trafficked by her dad. Before the conference even began, she casually mentioned “I still don’t understand how God could let that happen to me.” Then she went on to describe many of the horrific things that actually did happen to her and I wondered the same thing, “How could God let all those things happen to her if he could stop them?”
After some deep thinking, I decided that God could handle my questions and I began to ask the difficult questions I had been avoiding. This began the unraveling or deconstruction of my faith. It is an evolution that’s still ongoing.
I have found that I can thrive without organized religion and that my beliefs now sustain me in a way that I could never have hoped before I started asking the questions. I am glad I went down this road and started questioning things that didn’t make sense.
The second big mile marker was the Sophia scene in the movie, The Shack. When Mack was given the power and the choice to condemn one of his children, he couldn’t do it and I wondered how God could condemn his children.
Later, I would deeply consider organized religion and whether it was necessary in the 21st century. I also considered whether I was thriving without it or whether I needed to go back.
That was when Laura and I wrote the book “Out Into the Desert: Thriving Outside Organized Religion.” We held onto it for 2 years and then finally published it. It has been a best seller ever since.
We know that most people have these types of questions. We hope that they will begin to pursue them and start their own journey. It won’t be exactly like ours, but we think our book will be helpful to give language to some of the things they will feel and experience.
Don’t be afraid to ask questions. Join the conversation!
Be where you are,
Be who you are,
Karl Forehand
Photo by lil artsy: https://www.pexels.com/photo/photo-of-black-and-gray-touring-motorcycle-1192332/
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