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Posts Tagged ‘faith in Jesus’

WHAT DO YOU HOPE FOR?

Posted in Me & The World, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on October 15, 2022| 9 Comments »

I think most of us can agree on the ideas advanced in this meme. The question in my mind focuses around hope.

It’s natural to “hope for the best” in all things. To hope our children will do well. To hope our parents live a few more years. To hope our finances survive the latest economic challenge. To hope that rap/hip-hop goes away (sorry, that’s just my hope ;-)).

But what about something bigger? Something beyond the 70 or 80 years we spent on this planet?

We live in a culture that constantly, subtly discourages us from pondering the BIG questions. Go shopping, get a tatoo, pursue another promotion, buy the newest smartphone. THAT, our culture insists, is what we should focus on.

Maybe you’ve done that for awhile. And maybe you’ve come to realize your soul is hungry for something more. Something deeper. (Perhaps that’s why you’re reading this blog).

I wanted something more, and that led me to Jesus of Nazareth, who many people believe is the Son of God. I follow Him because He offers a precious HOPE to everyone – including YOU – regardless of who they are or what they’ve done (or not done).

  • Hope to be the person you were created to be
  • Hope for this world, which even the most optimist of us must admit isn’t doing very well
  • Hope for something beyond this life

How can one guy do all this? Consider these quotes from ancient writers:

  • He energizes those who get tired, gives fresh strength to dropouts.
  • The Spirit God gave us does not make us afraid. His Spirit is a source of power and love and self-control.
  • The Sovereign Lord is my strength. He makes me as surefooted as a deer, able to tread upon the heights.

And these words, from one of Jesus’s earliest and most influential followers:

  • The Lord is true to His promises; He will hold you up and guard you against the evil one.
  • I pray that the God who gives hope will fill you with much joy and peace as you trust in him. Then you will have more and more hope.

There it is. HOPE.

So how can you get in on this? Simple. God offers Jesus as a gift to anyone willing to accept Him. All you need to do is say yes to Jesus. Declare, with honest sincerity, that He is your Lord, Saviour and best friend. Ask Him to forgive you for all the wrong things you’ve done and all the right things you’ve failed to do. Ask Him to give you the HOPE only He can provide.

When that happens, Jesus comes into your life and starts to make you who you were created to be. It’s a long process that won’t end until this life ends. When that happens, trusting in Jesus means that God will see you like He sees His Son: perfect in every way. And you’ll be welcomed into Heaven to spend eternity with Him.

Sound good? Yes or no, post your comment below and let’s have a conversation. 🙂

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WHO’S ON WHAT SIDE? AND DOES IT MATTER?

Posted in Me & The World, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on September 17, 2022| 6 Comments »

Most of us know who Stephen Hawking is. For younger readers, Kirk Cameron was a swoon-worthy idol during his time acting on the 1980s TV comedy Growing Pains.

You might also not be aware that during the show’s seven-season run, Cameron decided to follow Jesus of Nazareth, who many people believe is the Son of God. Since the show ended, Cameron, now in his 50s, has starred in and/or produced many faith-themed movies and documentaries.

So why is he being mocked in this meme? Well, many of his productions have been….underwhelming. And some of his socially conservative public statements have made him a target of criticism from media, atheists and many celebrities.

What’s interesting about the meme that sparked this blog is how it singles out one controversial person while ignoring other Jesus followers who are widely admired for their intelligence and accomplishments.

Immediately, I can think of several:

  • Academy Award-winning actors Tom Hanks and Denzel Washington
  • Country singers Garth Brooks and Carrie Underwood
  • Scientist Francis S. Collins, who led the way in mapping the human genome (I wrote about him here: https://wp.me/p2wzRb-3o)
  • U.S. talk show host Stephen Colbert

There are many, many more Jesus-following notables – I listed a few in this blog: https://wp.me/p2wzRb-e9.

Here’s the thing, though: it’s not about who’s on what side, it’s not about popularity contests and it’s certainly not about anyone’s IQ. All these “measurements” are distractions, designed to prevent us from thinking about the big questions: who am I? Why am I here? What happens after this life ends?

If you’re willing to consider these questions, then consider this: you’re a creation of God. And one of the original-source biographies of Jesus says “God loved the world so much that He gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him would not be lost, but have eternal life.”

Maybe you’ve read that statement before. Did you know it applies to you? God so loved YOU that He gave His only Son, so that if YOU believe in Him then YOU will not be lost, but have eternal life.

If this doesn’t make sense, then let me ask: do you believe there’s something beyond this life? Maybe even a “good” place and a “bad” place? If yes, then ponder these words that Jesus told anyone willing to listen: “you must be perfect, just as your Father in Heaven is perfect.”

So that’s the ticket we need to spend eternity in Heaven with Jesus and His Father. None of us have any hope of achieving perfection, so what to do? Simple. Trust in Jesus. Declare Him Lord, Saviour and your best friend.

If you do that with serious sincerity, then He’ll come into your life and start to make you more of the person God created you to be. And when this life ends, God will see you like He sees His Son: perfect in every way. And the doors of Heaven will be opened to you.

Sound interesting? Yes or no, post your thoughts below and let’s have a conversation.

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THE PARTNERSHIP OF SCIENCE AND FAITH

Posted in Me & The World, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on April 16, 2022| 6 Comments »

If I’ve noticed anything over the years of interacting with atheist people (who kindly provided this meme), it’s that many of them love to set up “religion” and science as competing entities. And, of course, science always wins in their worldview.

First of all, I follow Jesus of Nazareth, who many people believe is the Son of God, but I want nothing to do with “religion” (I explain why here: https://wp.me/p2wzRb-i9). Second, the comparison portrayed in the meme above is simply false.

Despite the unfortunate attitudes of some Jesus followers, science and faith have never been adversaries. Personally, I like science because it shows me what God is up to.

For example, humanity didn’t know God has an entire universe beyond the Milky Way galaxy. That all changed in the 1920s, thanks to scientist Edwin Hubble. Sure, the discovery didn’t change life for anybody, but I still appreciate the knowledge. Thanks, Ed! 🙂

Here’s something else to ponder: Wikipedia lists more than 60 (that’s correct; sixty) living, Jesus-following thinkers in the fields of engineering, physics and astronomy, chemistry and biomedical sciences. One of them, Francis S. Collins, led the way in mapping the human genome. (I wrote about him, and others, here: https://wp.me/p2wzRb-3o.)

There are likely more Jesus-following thinkers, since Wikipedia notes “This list is non-exhaustive and is limited to those scientists whose Christian beliefs or thoughts, in writing or speaking, are relevant to their notability.” If science and faith were truly enemies, how could there even be one Jesus-following scientist?

Let me highlight something else that’s important: comparing science and faith is no more logical than comparing aardvarks and baseball. They are two entirely different things.

My faith in Jesus deals with questions that science does not: Who am I? Why are you and I here? Is there a right and wrong that doesn’t change with every fickle wind of human thought? What happens after this life ends? These are important questions that all of us should consider, no matter what our money/power/sex-obsessed culture insists.

After pondering these questions, doing a lot of reading and having many conversations with brave Jesus followers, I decided Jesus is who He says He is and placed my trust and my future in Him.

This decision has had two vitally important results:

  1. Jesus has come into my life to make me more like the person God created me to be. That work won’t end until this life is finished.
  2. Jesus sacrificed His life to make up for ALL the wrong things His followers have done, as well as ALL the right things we’ve failed to do. (That’s something none of us could ever do on our own.)

As a result of what Jesus has done, God sees me like He sees His Son: perfect in every way. And so when this life ends, I’ll be welcome to spent eternity with God in a place so amazing we can barely begin to grasp it.

Does this interest you? Yes or no, post your thoughts below and let’s have a conversation. 🙂

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PAYING OFF OUR SPIRITUAL CREDIT CARD

Posted in Me & The World, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on July 17, 2021| 6 Comments »

Most of us have grown so accustomed to living in a credit card world that we give it no more thought than breathing or going to the bathroom.

We use the card, a bill arrives every month and we either pay it off or pay the minimum and eventually deal with the interest charges.

This system exists in another world, too: the world of our behaviour. When I’m rude to another driver, engage in hurtful gossip or find shady ways to avoid paying taxes, that goes on my spiritual credit card. When I ignore the needs of people around me, stay silent in the face of injustices or fail to use my God-given gifts for good, that goes on my spiritual credit card.

You might notice that I’m writing about two elements of behaviour: the wrong things we do and the right things we fail to do.

As a follower of Jesus of Nazareth (who many people believe is the Son of God), I know both elements are equally important to my creator.

Do you pay attention to both? I often don’t and that’s something I need to pray about, asking God to open my eyes and heart to see and act on the opportunities He gives me to be the hands and feet of Jesus in a hurting world.

Returning to the spiritual credit card theme, I’ve built up quite a list of items, many of them things I’m not even aware of. So have you.

As with the credit card in your purse or wallet, all the wrong things we’ve done and all the right things we’ve failed to do must be paid for at some point. This is more important than you might think because Jesus tells everyone who’s willing to listen that “You must be perfect, just as your Father in Heaven is perfect.”

Jesus says this because when this life ends, perfection is the admission price to spending eternity with Him in Heaven. Nothing else will get you past the bouncer at the door.

So my question is: how will you pay off your spiritual credit card? I know that I can’t pay off my card and achieve perfection. It’s simply not possible. And I believe that’s the case for you, too.

Acknowledging this FACT means someone has to pay off our cards for us. And the only person who qualifies – the only person who is perfect – is Jesus.

When He was physically on earth, government and religious officials who were offended by His words and deeds arrested him on trumped-up charges and put Him to death. But their actions served an entirely different and life-changing purpose: His death paid all the credit card charges for everyone who believes in Him and follows Him.

Now, when God looks at Jesus followers, all He sees is His Son’s perfection. And that’s what the bouncer at the door to Heaven will see, too. But just as important, when you say yes to God’s gift of Jesus, you welcome Him into your life RIGHT NOW to help you become the person God created you to be.

Sound like a good deal? Yes or no, post your thoughts below and let’s have a conversation.

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THE DANCE OF BELIEFS AND EVIDENCE

Posted in Me & The World, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on June 12, 2021| 7 Comments »

I’m fascinated by the underlying points being made by this meme. Maybe you’ve noticed them too:

  1. Authority, revelation or faith are absolutely useless when it comes to beliefs.
  2. evidence will always destroy beliefs.

That’s what Dawkins, the author and controversial atheist, is really saying here. As a person of faith, I don’t agree with him, but having beliefs with zero evidence to back them up is a sad way to live. That said, I can’t imagine there are many people walking around with beliefs for which they can’t provide at least a crumb of evidence.

In my case, I believe in and follow Jesus of Nazareth, who many people believe is the Son of God. I’m not going to get into the evidence for His life, miracles, death and resurrection here (there are many, many books and websites that explore the evidence in great detail), but I will write that without that evidence, I would not have become a Jesus follower.

Still, evidence AND faith are needed to become a Jesus follower and I have no problem with that. Whether we like to admit it or not, we all live with this mix. One quick example: getting on an airplane means placing your faith in the pilots, the maintenance crews and the manufacturer that this metal tube is gonna get you to your destination in one piece. (Wikipedia lists more than 200 examples of where that faith was misplaced, each time killing at least 100 people.)

So let’s get to my main point and that is: atheism is a belief. From my years of interactions, I can tell you that a majority of atheists believe there is nothing behind all we see and experience. A majority of atheists believe we have no soul and, when we die, all that we are becomes nothing more than rancid worm food (sorry to be so blunt, but it’s necessary).

What is the evidence for these beliefs? I imagine they would point to this horribly messed up world and declare no god would ever allow wars, ethnic cleansing, dementia, poverty or hurricanes. All of that is good evidence. But for millions and millions and millions of people like me, it’s nowhere near enough.

Without exploring this in detail (that would require entire blogs), suffice it to say that much of this evidence can be explained by the gift of freewill. For example, poverty happens because:

  • Economic systems keep rich countries rich and poor countries poor.
  • governments spend billions of dollars on military instead of education, social programs and providing clean water.
  • Corruption prevents resources from getting to people in need.

As a Jesus follower, I know that the creator and master of time, space and the universe is working to change that, while still respecting His gift of freewill. Jesus-following organizations like Samaritan’s Purse, LifeWater, Compassion Canada and Christian Blind Mission are among the tools He’s using.

So, what kind of beliefs do you want? Atheism strikes me as being utterly hope-less and I don’t think anyone wants to live without hope. So check out Jesus. Learn why He’s God’s gift to anyone willing to follow Him. And how accepting the gift of Jesus provides you with credible, meaningful hope for this life and the life to come.

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FACING THE HARD QUESTIONS

Posted in Me & The World, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on November 22, 2014| 8 Comments »

mysteriousHave you ever encountered people of faith who think this way? Sadly, I have. I wouldn’t be surprised if they turned you off of considering a life of faith.

The frustrating thing is, many people of faith have not bothered to ask honest questions. Instead, if there are things they don’t understand, those things are just buried deep inside of them. And in turn, they want others to bury their questions, too.

And yet, the history is rife with people of faith asking God hard questions. Here are just a few from ancient writers:

  • My God, why did you dump me miles from nowhere?
  • Sometimes I ask God, ‘why did you let me down?’
  • I counted on you, God. Why did you walk out on me?

Probably the most amazing and poignant hard question for God came from the lips of Jesus of Nazareth, who many people believe is God’s son. When Jesus’s enemies succeeded in having Him put to death on trumped-up charges, one of His last statements (as He hung on a Roman cross) was this anguished cry: “My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?”

Call me crazy, but I think if Jesus can ask a question like that, then so can His followers — or any other person, for that matter.

I showed the meme that inspired this essay to a pastor friend. Here is Ross Carkner’s thoughtful response:

God is not afraid of our hard questions, but I can’t say that we feel the same way about His answers. I believe we are very afraid of His answers.

The mystery is not so much that God cannot be understood, but why we expect who He is to fit within our own understanding. When we have hard questions, we seem to expect easy and simplified answers.

Part of the deep mystery of God is that His ways are not our ways. If we want to know God, we need courage to set our own understanding aside and trade what has previously been a mystery, for faith in Him.

Since I became a Jesus follower in my 40s, I’ve had hard questions. And they’ve never gone away. But I know enough about God — about what He’s done for me and everyone else willing to accept the gift of His Son — to set those questions aside.

Ross was a big help in this. A few years ago, he had the wisdom to tell me that when I’m through with this life, all those hard questions simply won’t matter. They’ll be utterly irrelevant in the light of eternity in the presence of Jesus.

Do you have hard questions? Are they the reason — or the convenient excuse — you have not truly checked out what a life of faith in Jesus is all about? Yes or no, post your thoughts below and let’s have a conversation.

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