This is part of my year-long series exploring human-centered alternatives to the spiritual promises in Oswald Chambers’ classic devotional My Utmost for His Highest. Today’s entry, “The Staggering Question”, claims that human transformation requires divine intervention—that sinners cannot become saints through human effort, that people are fundamentally corrupt apart from God’s grace, and that recognizing your own spiritual depravity is essential for helping others.
Here’s a different approach:
Maya had been a social worker for fifteen years when she met Devon, a teenager aging out of foster care with a long history of theft, violence, and self-harm. His case file read like a catalog of human damage—abuse, neglect, multiple failed placements, and a diagnosis of conduct disorder.
Her supervisor, a devout Christian, shook his head. “Some kids are just too broken, Maya. You can’t save everyone. Sometimes you have to trust that God has a plan.”
But Maya didn’t see a broken soul needing divine rescue. She saw trauma responses that made perfect sense given Devon’s history. His stealing was survival behavior learned in homes where food was scarce. His violence was self-protection in environments where adults had failed him. His self-harm was the only control he’d ever had over his own pain.
Maya connected Devon with Dr. Chen, a trauma therapist who specialized in attachment disorders. She helped him enroll in a program that taught practical skills—budgeting, job applications, conflict resolution. She introduced him to Marcus, a former foster kid who now ran a mentorship program.
The transformation wasn’t miraculous—it was methodical. Devon learned to recognize his triggers and develop healthier responses. He discovered he was good with his hands and enrolled in a welding program. Through consistent relationships with adults who didn’t give up on him, he began to trust that people could be reliable.
Two years later, Devon had his own apartment, a steady job, and was volunteering with younger foster kids. Maya knew his success wasn’t due to divine intervention but to a combination of evidence-based therapy, practical support, stable relationships, and Devon’s own hard work in healing.
When people asked about the “miracle” of Devon’s turnaround, Maya corrected them. It wasn’t supernatural—it was what happened when damaged people received the specific help they needed from trained professionals and caring communities. Human nature wasn’t fundamentally corrupt; it was remarkably resilient when given the right conditions to heal.
Reflection Question: When have you seen someone make positive changes through human support and practical help rather than spiritual transformation?
This story is part of my upcoming book “The Undevoted: Daily Departures from Divine Dependence,” which offers 365 human-centered alternatives to the spiritual certainties in Chambers’ devotional. Each day explores how reason, community, and human resilience can address life’s challenges without requiring divine intervention.
God or Delusion? 