Why believe?

This question stems from my devotional today which asks why certain people believe only when it benefits them? When God apparently stops giving them what they want, their belief in him stops as well.

This makes sense if the reason for your belief in God or the path to God that you chose was all about how to maximize the return on invest of your faith or what belief system will be most convenient for you (i.e. I will be able to live in whatever way sounds good to me while my conscience is appeased because my religion tells me I'm fine).

I propose that the purpose of belief  must be more objective than subjective.

I believe what I believe not because it benefits me the most but because it is what I find closest to what is revealed truth.

Because a belief statement focused solely on a hedonistic lifestyle will only work if the deity who you profess to believe in exists solely for your benefit. (Hmm, that seems to me like a god made in man's image).

If our belief is acquired solely for our own benefit, I believe it limits our belief and limits our life as well. Somebody who lives for himself will die by himself. If we all did that, imagine how small this world will be.

If my belief exists outside of me. If my belief is a result of a pursuit of truth. Then it will be a journey of belief and unbelief. The ultimate destination will not only be a belief in God, but God himself. Life is littered with broken people. That is the reality. We need to believe in something or someone which allows us to live beyond our disappointments and our own brokenness.

In the end, the path which brings us closest to God will be the path that he chooses to reveal to us.