의심과 믿음이 함께 걸을 때

The Question That Would Not Leave

When Mara turned thirteen, a stubborn question settled into her mind and quietly refused to leave. She had recited the same prayers for years, yet lately the familiar words felt like echoes striking an empty ceiling. Some nights she wondered whether her faith was only a habit, inherited like a family recipe she had never tested. The question frightened her deeply. The worry followed her into class, into sleep, and even into the middle of worship songs. She had always assumed that sincere Christians never doubted anything at all. Her older brother told her to stop overthinking, but the question only grew louder in the surrounding silence. If unshakable certainty was the true proof of belief, then her honest uncertainty felt like a shameful betrayal. She did not want to lose God; she only wanted to know whether he was genuinely there.