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Archive for the ‘Me & The World’ Category

WHAT ABOUT PROOF?

Posted in Me & The World, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on November 21, 2015| 7 Comments »

PROOFHooo, boy. There’s a lot to unpack in this graphic, isn’t there?

Kindly presented by an Internet atheist community, I grabbed it because it presents such a wonderful opportunity to tell you the truth about the creator and master of time, space and the universe.

1.  If there were proof that a god exists, atheists would be denied the freedom to claim that God doesn’t exist. And if God has proven anything over the centuries, it’s that He’s all about free will.

Want proof? One of the early followers of Jesus of Nazareth (who many people believe is the Son of God) said “God wants everyone to be saved and to fully understand the truth.” That’s right, God wants everyone to be saved. He doesn’t force a single person. It’s up to us.

Another ancient writer goes further: “Today you must decide who you will serve … But as for me and my family, we will serve the Lord.” See? More free will. In fact, the entire existence of atheism is proof of free will.

2.  Like it or not, God wants us to come to Him in faith. The evidence comes from one of Jesus’s early followers: “Without faith no one can please God. Whoever comes to God must believe that he is real and that he rewards those who sincerely try to find him.”

So the very thing that many atheists hold in contempt is the very thing that God is all about. He wants a relationship with free-thinking people. He’s not interested in programming soulless robots to do His bidding because no matter how you look at it, that’s NOT a relationship.

3.  The “facts” that “could be repeated, tested and demonstrated” is for logic and mathematics, not for the creator of time, space and the universe. As Matt Slick puts it on the Christian Apologetics and Research Ministry website:

How do you “prove” there is a Great Being outside of our universe? Do we look for footprints in a riverbed? Do we examine evidence under a microscope and say, “A ha! There’s God!”? That would be the wrong approach. If God exists, He would be beyond our universe, non-material, and transcendent.

For me, the evidence of God is the universe. No God means no universe, no Frank’s Cottage, no you or me.

For me, the evidence of God is Jesus. Original-source biographies of His physical life on earth refer to Jesus as God’s Son at least four times. There’s no provable reason to believe that’s not so.

For me, the evidence of God is the set of morals that are common to a majority of people on this planet.

Where did these morals come from? How do we really know that it’s wrong to kill, to rape, to steal, to lie, to defraud, to cheat on our spouses?

Why are these moral absolutes? Because they were implanted inside us by our creator. And we clearly see what happens when these implants are ignored (see: ISIS, the Taliban, Nazi Germany, the Pol Pot regime, Josef Stalin and whoever has committed the latest mass murder).

So what do you think….do I, as a follower of Jesus, have a fiction that I simply want to believe? Yes or no, post your thoughts below and let’s have a conversation.

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WHAT ABOUT MONEY?

Posted in Me & The World, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on October 31, 2015| 2 Comments »

What About Money? Usually, when I encounter graphics on internet atheism communities, they’re created by people who know the Bible as well (if not better) than many Jesus followers.

Sadly, whoever is responsible for this one is an exception.

The actual quote, from a section of the Bible called ‘1 Timothy’, goes like this: “For the love of money is the root of all evil.”

Now I’m not surprised that this truth was misstated. Many of us have heard it put exactly how it is in the graphic. But I’m sure you can see the significant difference.

Money never has been and never will be the root of all evil. Jesus of Nazareth, who many people believe is the Son of God, never said it was.

But He did state this, in an original-source biography of of His physical life on earth: “You cannot serve two masters at the same time. You will hate one and love the other, or you will be loyal to one and not care about the other. You cannot serve God and money at the same time.”

Whether or not you care about Jesus, His point is absolutely worth considering. Do you ‘serve’ money? When all is said and done, is it the driving force in your life? Is it the driving force in mine? It’s a good question for us to consider frequently because the more you love money:

  • The more you’ll do to get as much of it as possible.
  • The more you’ll sacrifice in your family and personal life.
  • The more you’ll turn a blind eye to the wrong things you do (and the right things you fail to do).
  • The more you’ll listen to people who are similarly driven to get more.

Think about all these things.

The accurate Bible quote about money that I mentioned above kinda negates the question posed in this graphic. But I’ll tackle it just the same.

Churches ask for money because it’s mandated in ancient documents. One of the four accounts of Jesus’ physical life on earth (may people believe He is still here, in spirit), notes this scene:

“Jesus looked up and saw some rich people putting their gifts to God into the Temple collection box. Then he saw a poor widow put two small copper coins into the box. He said [to his followers], ‘This poor widow gave only two small coins. But the truth is, she gave more than all those rich people. They have plenty, and they gave only what they did not need. This woman is very poor, but she gave all she had to live on’.”

Note two things about this excerpt:
1.  Jesus has nothing negative to say about giving to a “religious” institution.
2.  He makes a very clear point about what giving really means.

Beyond churches needing money to keep the lights on and (in Canada, where I live) the winter snow out of the parking lot, churches ask for money to do good.

For example, the church I attend has a million-dollar annual budget to support more than 20 non-profit organizations. These organizations supply food to the hungry, help troubled teens, provide emergency disaster relief, support churches in the developing world and much more.

Most churches that are truly committed to following Jesus are just like mine. God loves everyone — including the atheist who created the graphic that inspired this blog — so churches and the people who attend should show the same love.

Do we fall short on this? Absolutely. But please remember: churches are not museums for saints; they’re hospitals for sinners.

As far as I can see, every person on this planet is a long way from perfect. But by following Jesus and allowing Him to work in your life, you can come closer to sainthood. Interested? Yes or no, post your thoughts below and let’s have a conversation.

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JUDGING AND IMPRESSING

Posted in Me & The World, tagged , , , , , , , , , , on October 3, 2015| 4 Comments »

ImpressingYourselfWhen I encountered this graphic, posted on Facebook by a cousin, the rusty cogs in my mind started to creak.

Will people judge me (and you?) Absolutely. Like it or not, ALL of us judge — each other, what we watch on TV or the Internet, what we hear on the radio, what we read in tweets, Facebook posts or text messages.

We judge (often without realizing it) words, appearances, clothing, hairstyles, actions, possessions — you name it. There pretty much isn’t anything we don’t judge (or assess, if you prefer that term).

There’s something I found that addresses this tendency and provides wise words that can serve anyone well.

“Don’t condemn others, and God won’t condemn you. God will be as hard on you as you are on others! He will treat you exactly as you treat them.” (From one of the original-source biographies of Jesus of Nazareth, who many people believe is the Son of God).

Most of us have heard the first part (another translation phrases it like this: judge not, lest you be judged), but the second part is just as important. Since all us judge, the key is HOW do we judge? Is it with wisdom, maturity and compassion?

As a Jesus follower, I know that’s how I want God to judge me when this life is finished. So I should be asking His help to make me the right kind of judge.

What about the rest of the graphic? Does it really make sense to live your life to impress yourself? What does that really mean?

For some people, it might mean impressing yourself with a big house, vehicles that make your neighbours drool with envy and at least one ridiculously large flat-screen TV.

Other people might look in the mirror and be impressed with what they see if they have a trophy wife (or husband) glued to their arm like eye candy.

What about careers and professional achievement? Does the title “chief executive officer”, “chairman of the board” or “PhD” on a business card impress you?

One of the reasons I follow Jesus is because I know that the Creator of time, space and the universe is so NOT impressed by the things that our culture considers impressive.

Another ancient prophet points out this life-changing truth: “People judge others by what they look like, but I [God] judge people by what is in their hearts.”

What’s in my heart? Like most other people, I can be petty, jealous, resentful, lazy and self-centred. That’s why I believe in, and follow, Jesus.

By following Jesus, I give Him permission to come into my life and begin a transformation — making me more like Him and less like the world. So I’m slowly becoming LESS petty, jealous, resentful, lazy and self-centred.

And because I follow Jesus, when my life on this earth is done and I go to meet God, He won’t see my faults. He’ll only see His Son’s perfection. And I’ll be welcome into Heaven to spend eternity with Jesus.

Does this sound attractive? Yes or no, post your thoughts below and let’s have a conversation.

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SAYING YES

Posted in Me & The World, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , on September 19, 2015| 6 Comments »

Saying YES Jesus prayWell, how’s THAT for a challenging graphic?

And, as if the words aren’t tough enough, the person who posted the graphic in an internet atheism community added this note: “Remember: God LOVES them, just not enough to help. It’s really OUR fault…”

Stay with me while I unpack all this and, if I do a decent job, point you in an entirely different direction.

1.  Jesus of Nazareth (who many people believe is the Son of God) didn’t say “no”. He turned to his followers and told us He wants to work through US to say YES.

That’s why there are organizations like Samaritan’s Purse, World Vision, Compassion, International Justice Mission, Food For The Hungry, Christian Medical & Dental Associations and many more.

These organizations provide emergency food, water and shelter after disasters; medical/dental care in desperately poor developing nations; agriculture training for impoverished farmers; basic literacy and vocational education for women.

Some Jesus-following organizations rescue people from slavery and sex trafficking, others put their staff at risk fighting life-threatening diseases like Ebola.

The work of these aid organizations is ongoing and never-ending. In other words, it’s Jesus saying YES, again and again and again.

2.  After reading #1, does it really sound like God loves them, just not enough to help? Really?

3.  The atheist commenter is right: In many, many ways, it’s really OUR fault.

  • WE support economic systems that keep rich nations rich and and poor nations poor.
  • In developed nations like Canada, where I live, WE come up with justifications for greed like “let’s help our poor before we help the poor elsewhere”. Then we DON’T help because “I pay taxes for government social programs to help them.”
    Not only is that ridiculous and stone-hearted, it also ignores the FACT that being poor in countries like Canada, the United States, Britain, France, Sweden, Australia, etc. is NOTHING like being poor in Haiti, Senegal, Somalia, Afghanistan, Zimbabwe, etc. There’s simply no comparison and no explanation should be necessary.
  • It’s really OUR fault (I’m referring to humanity in general, as opposed to God’s fault) because so many of the politicians, business leaders, bureaucrats and army leaders in struggling countries are horribly corrupt. They simply don’t care if their people are starving.

4.  So after reading all this, maybe you’re thinking “why doesn’t God just fix all this?” Sometimes, I think that too. Then I remember the precious gift of freewill. God gave it to us and human history has proven that He rarely interferes with that gift. No matter how badly we misuse it. Part of the reason for that gift is God wants to have a relationship, through His Son, with free-thinking people like me, YOU and every other human.

I decided to say YES to that relationship because it’s made my life better now and, when this life is finished, it’ll give me eternity with Him in Heaven.

What do YOU say to that relationship offer? Accept or reject, post your thoughts below and let’s have a conversation.

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ARE QUESTIONS ALLOWED?

Posted in Me & The World, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on September 5, 2015| 2 Comments »

Christianity asking questionsWhen I found this graphic (kindly supplied by an Internet atheist community), my first thought was “All the answers? Wouldn’t that be nice!”

I can’t write about other faiths, but I can write about mine. As a follower of Jesus of Nazareth — who many people believe is God’s divine Son — I have all kinds of questions for which I’ve never found the answers. And likely never will.

Questions about the Bible. Questions about why Jesus did — and did not — do certain things. Questions about why this world is the way it is and why things never seem to really change.

I suspect most other Jesus followers have questions similar to mine. So right from the get-go, following Jesus is not among the faiths — I have no interest in ‘religion’ and here’s why: http://bit.ly/ReligionSlavery — that are targeted in this graphic.

In fact, there are examples of people asking challenging, emotional questions right in the Bible:

From a section called ‘Psalms’ – My God, my God, why have You forsaken me? Why are You so far from helping me, from the words of my groaning?

While He hung on a Roman cross, convicted of trumped-up charges, Jesus cried out a similar question – My God, my God, why have You left me alone?

Also from Psalms – Lord, how long until You heal me? Lord, why do You stay so far away? Why do You hide from people in times of trouble? How long will You forget me, Lord? Will You forget me forever?

These are just a few examples of people in the Bible who felt no restrictions on asking tough questions. In fact, if the Son of God could ask such a difficult question, why can’t the rest of humanity?

This freedom is just one reason why, in my 40s, I decided to follow Jesus. Now maybe you’re thinking “Ya, but you didn’t get your questions answered. So where’s the upside to your argument?”

The upside is my unanswered questions are a powerful, and very necessary, reminder that God is God. And I am NOT. An ancient prophet stated it very clearly: The Lord says, “My thoughts are not like yours. Your ways are not like mine. Just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so my ways are higher than your ways, and my thoughts are higher than your thoughts.”

Another upside? A wise pastor friend told me that, when this life is done, all my questions likely won’t matter anymore. I’ll be in Heaven for all eternity with Jesus. Questions? What questions?

What do you think? Post your thoughts below and let’s have a conversation.

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LIFE BEFORE DEATH

Posted in Me & The World, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on August 29, 2015| 8 Comments »

Aug. 2015I guess there are some atheists out there who believe that people of faith are just gritting their teeth and tolerating this nauseating existence before going on to unending glory in the life to come.

But from my perspective as a follower of Jesus of Nazareth (who many people believe is God’s divine Son), atheists and Jesus followers have “life before death” as a common belief.

Let me make this as clear as possible: while life after death is of supreme importance, life BEFORE death is just as significant.

How can I write that? Consider these words of Jesus, recorded in one of the primary source documents about His life: “I came to give life—life that is full and good.”

He’s not talking about life after death; He’s talking about life RIGHT NOW.

So what does that mean?

1.  Life becomes full and good because you’ve join a worldwide movement of believers. So you don’t have to make a go of it solo. You can attend a church, read about Jesus, regularly pray with (and for) others and support each other through good times and bad.

2.  Life becomes full and good because you have a new power that helps you set aside the meaningless, superficial priorities of our culture and focus on what’s truly important.

So you are put on a path to stop worrying about whether you have a new car, the latest smartphone and the biggest flat-screen TV. You stop looking to your mate or your friends to give you happiness because you realize that happiness comes through following Jesus.

3.  Life becomes full and good because you have a pathway to becoming truly generous. It’s no longer about getting a charitable tax break or seeking something in return when you give. It’s about being Jesus’s ambassador in a world most of us are willing to admit isn’t doing very well.

4.  Life become full and good when you realize that the 70-odd years most of us spend on this planet is merely a blip in time compared to the eternity Jesus followers have in Heaven with Jesus.

The blessing of that perspective means we no longer have to put so much stake in every good or bad thing that happens to us in this life. We see the bigger picture and it changes everything.

5.  Life become full and good because you realize that Jesus died to make up for all the wrong things you’ve done and the right things you’ve failed to do. So the burden of guilt and shame is lifted from you; God sees you as He sees His Son: perfect in every way.

(This blog highlights an amazing example of the power of God’s forgiveness: http://wp.me/p2wzRb-6K.)

Now I’m not going to sugar-coat this and claim followers of Jesus float on a cloud of bliss. Jesus tells His followers “In this world you will have troubles. But be brave! I have defeated the world!”

That means the world doesn’t automatically have the final say on your life. If you decide to follower Jesus, then HE has the final say. And that final say is glorious.

What do you think? Post your thoughts below and let’s have a conversation.

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THE TRUTH OF BEING CLOSE-MINDED

Posted in Me & The World, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on August 15, 2015| 21 Comments »

Open mindedAccording to Dictionary.com, to be open-minded is to have have or show a mind receptive to new ideas or arguments. It also means being unprejudiced, unbigoted and impartial.

As I pondered these definitions and looked at the message of the graphic above (posted in an internet atheism community), I realized something: being fully, completely open-minded is absolutely impossible.

First of all, consider the person who created this graphic. The arbitrary words make it clear: he or she is close-minded when it comes to Jesus of Nazareth (who many people believe is the Son of God). It’s easy to make this statement because he or she didn’t write “Most open-minded Christians probably won’t (or might not) be a Christian for long”.

The wording in this graph sounds like a fact — which the author certainly cannot prove. And sadly, from my interactions with online atheists, I can tell you that a majority of them are all about proof. Ironically, most of these people are close-minded to anything else.

Secondly, the thing about Christianity is it can’t be proven. And I don’t regard that as a bad thing. In fact, I think the lack of conclusive, scientific proof about Christianity is no accident. If God is about anything, He is about free will. Make Christianity provable and at that moment, free will is gone.

A lack of free will means atheists, Jews, Muslims, Buddhists, agnostics and everyone else who doesn’t follow Jesus can’t be who they are — since they’ve all been proven wrong.

God has shown again and again that He’s not interested in goose-stepping robots. He’s interested in an eternal relationship, through Jesus, with free-thinking, overwhelmingly imperfect people who realize they’ll never really get their lives together without Jesus. In other words, people like YOU and me.

I like how famed British writer and thinker G.K. Chesterton wrote about being open-minded: “Merely having an open mind is nothing. The object of opening the mind, as of opening the mouth, is to shut it again on something solid.”

That’s what I did when I decided, at age 41, to follow Jesus. He’s as solid as I (and many millions of others around the world) need Him to be.

Making that decision didn’t mean I suddenly lost respect for those who don’t follow Jesus. In fact, I’m called to love them just as God loves them and offers His Son to them as a gift.

What happens when you accept that gift? If you’re serious about it, your life should begin to change almost immediately. In my case, I effortlessly stopped using offensive language. And that was just the start.

With Jesus in my life, I became more generous. I changed jobs to one that is focused on telling people about Jesus. I married a woman who is also committed to Jesus.

More changes are coming. In fact, those changes won’t end until I’m finished with this life and go to Heaven to spend eternity in God’s presence.

The same can happen to you. Interested? Yes or no, post your thoughts below and let’s have a conversation.

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WHAT ABOUT THE END OF THE WORLD?

Posted in Me & The World, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on August 8, 2015| 7 Comments »

end of the worldI am just LOVING the photos used to illustrate the point in this meme, found on an internet atheism community.

Apparently as a follower of Jesus of Nazareth (who many people believe is the Son of God), I’m rubbing my hands in gleeful anticipation of a nuclear holocaust annihilating our world. And I have no use for gloriously sunny summer days. Yech. Where’s my wonderful atomic bomb? 😉

OK, now that we’ve had a laugh, consider this: in all my years of being a Jesus follower, I’ve never met a single person who’s counting the days ’til God puts an end to this planet.

Not even one.

Oh, I’m sure there are a few out there; maybe they’re holed up in some bizarre, remote compound with guns and emergency supplies (which wouldn’t make sense; what use would that stuff be if the world ended?). But they’re a rare and possibly damaged breed.

The rest of us are enjoying the same beautiful places that atheists, Buddhists, Muslims, Jews and agnostics appreciate. The only difference is most Jesus followers are keenly aware of who is behind not just sunny days, but every kind of day: the Creator and master of time, space and the universe.

That means the most beautiful day for Jesus followers is every day. Just like it is for the person who created this meme.

All that said, there is a grain of truth here: the end of the world is coming. Sadly, there is an industry out there amongst some Jesus followers who damage the credibility of Jesus by trying to predict that time.

All they — and you — have to do is read this excerpt from one of the original-source biographies of Jesus: “No one knows when that day or time will be. The Son and the angels in heaven don’t know when that day or time will be. Only the Father knows.”

These are the words of Jesus. So why waste time trying to figure it out? Instead, I keep in mind these words of a man whom Jesus personally taught to follow Him: “God is restraining himself on account of you, holding back the End because he doesn’t want anyone lost. He’s giving everyone space and time to change.”

That’s right. YOU, and millions of other people who don’t follow Jesus, are the reason this broken, sputtering world is still lurching forward.

If you believe there’s nothing beyond this life — and when you die, ALL that you are will become nothing more than worm food — then maybe these “holdouts” are a good thing to you.

But if you somehow know there MUST be more than 75 years of eating, sleeping, working, having children, getting sick and leaving behind all your precious possessions, then it’s worth seriously checking out Jesus.

He’s a gift, offered to every person on this planet, no matter how “good” or “bad” they (and YOU) are, how rich or poor you are, how joyous or miserable you are. That gift leads to eternal life in Heaven with Jesus. Look into it, ’cause no matter what our culture insists, this is the most important investigation you can ever undertake.

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THE TRUTH ABOUT INDOCTRINATION

Posted in Me & The World, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on August 1, 2015| 3 Comments »

10440724_10152229802268262_1660947865292267107_nIndoctrination: the act of indoctrinating, or teaching or inculcating a doctrine, principle, or ideology, especially one with a specific point of view – Dictionary.com

I found this graphic on an Internet atheism community, so it’s probably aimed at people of faith. The inference is clear: believing in a loving creator is false, so the only way to make it acceptable is to brainwash young minds that don’t know any better.

If that’s true, then how does one explain Rosalind Picard? According to Wikipedia, she’s a professor of media arts and sciences at the prestigious Massachusetts Institute of Technology.  Picard is also director and founder of the Affective Computing Research Group at the MIT Media Lab, co-director of the Things That Think Consortium, and chief scientist and co-founder of Affectiva, an emotion measurement technology company.

Here’s the kicker: Picard, 60, says she was raised an atheist, but converted to Christianity as a young adult. So is it fair to say she was indoctrinated to believe there is no God? And if that’s true, why did this brilliant scientific mind go in the opposite direction – and stay there?

Let’s be honest here: absolutely EVERYONE gets certain ideas hammered into their minds while they’re young and defenceless. Deny it if you want, but think hard about your life.

  • If you live in a developed country, wasn’t it likely you were indoctrinated with the virtues of capitalism and democracy?
  • If your father abandoned your mother at a very young age, isn’t it possible you were indoctrinated to believe that he (and often, by extension, all men) are self-centred and irresponsible?
  • If you live in certain Middle Eastern countries, isn’t it quite feasible that you were indoctrinated to think of the United States — and by extension, the entire “west” — as immoral and evil?

In each of these cases, the truth didn’t matter very much. The world was seen through biased eyes, just as I believe the graphic that sparked this essay was created with a deep-seeded bias.

So, if you’ve given this some thought and realize you’ve had a long bias against following Jesus of Nazareth (who many people believe is the divine Son of God), then maybe this is the time to investigate this whole Jesus thing with an open mind.

Why Jesus and not other faiths? Consider these facts:
1.  Eight hugely important predictions about Jesus, made in ancient documents, came true. Among these were where Jesus was born, the fact He would be betrayed by a friend, that He would be crucified and that He would be resurrected.

2.  Jesus said that He alone was the Way, the Truth, and the Life and that no one can find God without Him. Nice claim, but what backs it up? Original-source documents about His physical life on earth detail all kinds of miracles performed by Jesus, including healing diseases, restoring sight, feeding thousands of people with just a few loaves of bread & fish and coming back from the dead.

3.  As the Christian Apologetics and Research Ministry (www.carm.org) explains, “Buddha, Muhammad, Confucius and Krishna did not rise from the dead.  Only Jesus has physically risen from the dead, walked on water, claimed to be God and raised others from the dead. Why trust anyone else?”

So what makes all this credible? Simply read about the life of one of Jesus’s most devoted followers, Paul of Tarsus. I write about him, and how he is a testament to Jesus’s reality, here: http://wp.me/p2wzRb-g3

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BUYING YOUR WAY INTO HEAVEN

Posted in Me & The World, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on July 18, 2015| 12 Comments »

BuyingIntoHeaven 7.15No doubt about it; Microsoft co-founder, philanthropist and uber-billionaire Bill Gates has done a lot of amazing things in his years on this planet.

Through the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, he’s given away $28 billion (almost half of his total wealth) since 2007.  That money has gone to improving education, providing medical aid for millions of children, upgrading water/sanitation in the developing world and much more.

Along the way, Gates has persuaded other billionaires, such as Warren Buffett, to similarly dedicate massive amounts of their personal wealth to charity.

In short, this guy ROCKS.

So what about the meme (found in an internet atheism community) that inspired me to write this essay?

I did some research; after reading several interviews, it seems Gates can best be described as agnostic. That means he declares that he simply doesn’t know if there’s a God.

So, is Bill Gates going to hell, as this graphic suggests? The simple answer for me is: I don’t know.

As a follower of Jesus of Nazareth (who many people believe is God’s Son), I DO know that giving $28 billion or $280 billion to charity is not the ticket to Heaven. No one can buy eternal life with God. It’s not for sale.

Indeed, one of Jesus’s earliest followers noted “Your salvation doesn’t come from anything you do. It is God’s gift. It is not based on anything you have done. No one can brag about earning it.”

On the other hand, having faith in Jesus and doing nothing about it isn’t going to go over well, either.

One of Jesus’s brothers explained it this way: “Does merely talking about faith indicate that a person really has it? Isn’t it obvious that God-talk without God-acts is outrageous nonsense?”

I don’t know where that leaves someone like Bill Gates. After all, despite his “God-acts” he is not (and never will be) anywhere close to perfect.

For example, under his leadership the United States government took Microsoft to court over anti-competitive business practices. Despite Gates’ testimony, the company lost. In addition, while Gates was chairman and chief software architect, Microsoft lost another major anti-competition court case, this time to the European Union.

But never mind Bill. What about YOU? You can’t buy your way into Heaven, so how does your behaviour stack up? Examine it with cold, hard realism. Can you defend and account for every wrong thing you’ve done and every right thing you’ve failed to do?

If you’re like me, you can’t. But by believing in Jesus and following Him, you don’t have to. He’s the gift that gives you eternal life. How about giving Him serious consideration?

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