I've always hated it when Science is paired against Religion.

 SCIENCE VS RELIGION. It's such an obtuse comparison. As if it's all one or the other. Any religious person who denies all scientific theory is a... silly goose and not worth taking your time to talk to. They're too far gone, I think the biblical word is "foolish."

If God created the world, He created the science and math that explain it as well. That simple.

Big Bang? Absolutely! Why wouldn't there be a scientific explanation behind the creation of the world. Why would the most powerful being in the universe have to break his own rules? To me that doesn't disprove Him, it makes Him way more freaking amazing.

I believe in miracles. But I also believe that when people are healed miraculously, or extremely quickly, it doesn't just happen, there are massive influxes in white blood cells and all the other cool stuff that the body does to that area to heal itself. God, but also scientific.

Evolution, Natural Selection, yes. Animals and humans have adapted to better suit their environments. It's been proven! Once again, that doesn't disprove God, it makes his creative abilities even more complex and amazing!

From the atheist side though, it's not that simple to conjoin. Faith in human understanding is seen as predominantly superior to a faith in supernatural guidance.

Here's why:

Here's the story about the girl if you haven't heard.

No one has ever started a war over scientific theory.
Scientific discovery invites people to play together. To explore the world and see what can be accomplished. Together.

It unites.

Religion... well, it separates. It says "I'M RIGHT!" and "YOU'RE WRONG!" and then waits for death to prove so.

Science says "I think this... but you think that...let's work together to figure it out who's right!" Then they play. Eventually one of them is proven correct and they both celebrate!

It's one of the reasons I respect atheists so much.

Secretly...sometimes I want to be one of them... 

Sometimes I'm a little lot embarrassed by religion.

"It's not a religion! It's a relationship!" - Said every religious person ever.

I think it's the humility in which you have to approach with world as an atheist that makes me so drawn to them. They are far more likely than Christians to look at the world and say "Ohhh myyyy God." and then be drawn into a relationship with creation.

Prayer

God, make me a person that can draw others into a realization of you and this world. Help me and others look at the complexities of this world and want to know more about IT and YOU. That we might see the world in a way that makes us say "Oh, MY God."

I loved Church today. It was refreshing, fulfilling and challenging to be reminded of the importance of guardrails in my personal life.

When I left, I was filled with truth and a challenge to change as well as something to question.

Here's the source of my atheist-inspired question of the week:

So, there was this guy who had a small family, barely making ends meet. He denies his company's health insurance because it's too expensive. Three weeks later he finds out he's about to have another kid. Said company graciously offers to back date the insurance but he takes the moral high ground and denies the help because it isn't honest.

Good! Up to this point in the story I'm on board. Good choice.

Day of the pregnancy comes and the hospital is full so they're put into a more expensive room and the bill sky rockets!

"Random" lady comes in and the guy fills out "some paper," an investigation happens and the entire bill is wiped clean.

THANK YOU JESUS!

Hmmm...

Everyone else walked out of that service thinking "Wow, what a cool miracle." But I've been tainted too much by the friggin' atheists. To me, and the atheist community, there was a skewed observation of the events:

Not a "random person" but hospital or government employee came into the room representing a health assistance program that some EXTREMELY generous PEOPLE had the wisdom and kindness to set up in advance for people with financial hardships.

They filled out an application that didn't go to Jesus's desk, but another hospital or government employee's where they had the kindness to, at the sacrifice of someone else's finances, forgive the debt.

I understand the argument that God used these people since it's all His money anyways; but I promise that other poor non-Christians received the same assistance.

Why do we overlook these wonderful people? Yes, thank God. But let's not discredit the people involved.

The story just reminded me of these two posts I saw on the atheist blog:

As someone who has experienced a legitimate miraculous healing, I see the flaw in the 2nd image. The truth is however, very few of us have experienced that and our "healings" come from the hard work of researches, scientists and doctors.

I'm not arguing that we shouldn't thank God for these things, but we look like total jerks when we ONLY thank God. To many of the people who he used to provide for us, he's an imaginary guy in the sky... and it must make them feel like crap to be overlooked like that...

To be fair, I know that I've done this my entire life... I think we all have.

Prayer:

God, help me to show your servants the gratitude they deserve while not requiring it myself. Show me the people that I am overlooking and help me spread the love that you want them to feel.

I'm looking forward to entering back into a season where I am able to attend church more often. I've given up on the idea that it will ever be the same though. I know these kinds of thoughts and questions will plague me every time I go. I sincerely hope that I'm not just turning into an ass but that God is challenging me because he wants to draw me closer... whether or not that is the case, I'm still unsure of.

I have a draft that's been sitting for a couple days, but it was pretty Negative Nancy and the past 2 days have actually been pretty great. God really seems to be assuring me in a time of questioning and possible new territory.

I found this article that an american friend in Copenhagen kind of validate some of what I've been thinking.

There's a movement in Christianity. Call it post-modern, call it the Emergent Church, whatever... I'm not sure what it is, but there's a shift, and I'm part of it. I'm not saying it's positive, but I'm not saying it's negative. It's just happening.

Here's the article.  

Hot Dawg! It's a bloggin' kind of day!

Maybe this is the answer to my prayer earlier? It was connected to the last video I posted which was on the site that is home to the atheist community I mentioned earlier.

So if not this ^ than what?

The truth behind this blog is that I've been captivated by atheists. 

I've discovered a MASSIVE community of atheists online and for a while they knocked me completely off my feet. They're far more well spoken than I and very able to logically and simply explain why the idea of any God or religion is not only wrong but a negative influence on the world.

I would be lying if I said they haven't at times convinced me of many of their ideas, but I stand firm in the knowledge that Christ walked the earth, was the son of God and wants to redeem us back to His perfect will. Beyond that... well, I guess that's the purpose of this blog.

Anyways, one thing I've learned about most atheists is that they're certainly not terrible people and when confronted with TRUE Christianity, they're rarely (although sometimes) against it.

This video and comment made me cry and then smile. (Not literally, I'm a man, I don't cry.)

So if they approve of this... maybe we should consider why they are so against Christianity...

*I want to add that the atheist community does not see themselves as Atheist vs Christianity / Islam / Judaism / Rastafarian / Taoism etc, they more see themselves as Atheism vs. Ignorance and are huge proponents for logic and reason.

Jesus Died for Your Sins.

 It's funny how I've always put certain nuances around the death of Christ but left out so many others. How little I've actually reflected over the realities of Jesus's execution. Why it happened politically, naturally, humanly. How when people are executed today for their radical actions (Google; Muammar Gaddafi, Joseph Kony, Saddam Husssein) the mob mentality against these people are exactly as it was against Jesus.

What the heck could he have done to promote the same kind of reaction as Joseph Koney!?

Remember Gaddafi and Bin Laden? How happy people were when he was finally dead. People felt like that after Jesus died...

The person I'm suppose to modeling my life after was put to death for his insurrection against the established order.

Dang.

Yes he died for supernatural reasons too, but those were played out through very earthly actions. It never would have happened if he hadn't been challenging the norm. If he didn't force people to change the way they saw the world, each other and God. If he didn't stir up rebellion against the religious order in power... I'd be going to hell.

Thankfully, Jesus was a rebel. Thankfully, Jesus didn't just memorize the Torah and became the same kind of  Rabbi as everyone else... Thankfully he was ok with being thought of as a drunkard, a bastard and a blasphemer. Thankfully Jesus lived a life of sedition and rebellion so that he was also able to die for my sins.

Prayer:

Is the lifestyle you lived still needed today? Was the goal of your life accomplished? Are we the church that you tried to create? Or are we still not getting it all... I feel like we're still missing so much.