Why should I believe?

   It seems fewer and fewer people want to believe in a God much less the Christian God.  I often hear that God isn't real, that it doesn't make sense that millions and millions of people should go to hell just because they never heard of Christ, that Christianity is a crutch, that many Biblically characters like Moses, Paul and even Jesus never existed,  and one man even thought it was funny that Christians pray for healing from some disease, illness, or injury, that was given to them by God and who seems unable to either prevent the situation or to provide a solution.
  It seems that many church going people don't act like they believe God and many that profess to believe aren't faithful to their faith or to their church.  So based on the opposition and the lack of commitment to a God that demands obedience, why should one continue in the faith and why should a non-believer convert over to Christianity?
   Even some Biblical characters have questioned Gods motives and His existence.  Even those men who walked closed to Jesus denied Him and one even betrayed Him.   So if those men who saw the miracles didn't understand Jesus, even after spending three years with Him, how am I supposed to accept Him as real?
  first of all, let me make something very clear.  Man is given free will so God does not make one believe or disbelieve.  Faith is entirely voluntary.  When people ask why does God allow bad things to happen then you have your answer.  Man has free will and is not controlled by God. That is the very reason one cannot prove the existence of God.  If we could prove He is real then belief in Him would no longer be by faith.  He is not going to provide an eternal home to those that deny him.  Who would after all?
   Those who believe can see the hand of God working in events while those that do not believe can't see that.  A good example would be an uprooted tree following a blast of wind and rain.  Some will claim that the wind, which we cannot see, blew the tree over, while others will claim that the tree had a weal root system.  Same event, same result, but a different belief as to the cause of the tree falling.
  I have seen many Christians suffer from heart wrenching diseases and have watched as they suffered and died.  Which did God allow them to get sick and why did He fail to heal them even though many believers asked Him in prayer for healing?
   First of all, we must realize that God doesn't exist to do our bidding but we exist to do His.  I know you don't like that explanation and that's your right.  You are a non believer and have the right to accept or reject the truth but that doesn't change a thing.  Scripture tells us that the rain will fall on the just and the unjust.  In other words, we are all human and being a Christian doesn't give us special privilege's.  We take our chances just like everyone else.  God offers us support and encouragement but promises nothing beyond that.
    There is a saying "no pain, no gain" which means that in order to improve ones physical     conditioning, one has to put forth some extra effort.  Sometimes bad things happen to Christians just because we are human, sometimes because is preparing us for a special task and He knows that we haven't reached the point of being able to handle the challenge yet so He has to strengthen us.  Sometimes Christians die of their illness or injury.  "It is appointed unto men once to die."  Everyone will die, sooner or later.  Sometimes babies die.  If you don't believe in God then you know it isn't His fault.  Some have a basic knowledge of God and choose to blame Him.
   I do know that for every argument you can offer to explain your disbelief and I offer an equally valid reason for believing.  I haver also learned that the deeper ones faith the closer the relationship.
Faith isn't a blind belief in the unknown but the evidence of things unseen.  Just as you may deny the wind and believe the tree was just too big and heavy to stand anymore I can see evidence that wind exists although it can't be seen.  
  I do know that one of two things are true:  either there is or there isn't a God.  If there is believer's get to go to heaven and non believers will spend eternity in Hell.  If there isn't we all break even.
  The Holy Bible teaches that there is no other name given among men through which a man may be saved and that the only way to heaven is through Christ.  Even so, Christ came to live on earth just 2,000 years ago yet we know that many people worshipped God and were believer's before Christ,
The bible also says that In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God.  Scripture also reminds us that nature itself testifies to the existence of God.  Acceptance of the evidence God has provided to all men of all times is counted as acceptance of Christ.  It says so in the book of Hebrews.
  We are separated from God not because we are bad people but because we were born "human nature" No one has to teach a child to be selfish, to steal, or to tell a lie.  That comes natural and this natural, or human nature, is what separates us from God.  We must be reconciled to God  and the way to do that is to accept what Christ did on the cross.
     

Baby's Birthday

  I call my wife Baby because she's 5 years younger than me.  We started the day with Doctor's appointments:  mine in Winston-Salem and her's in Greensboro.  Mine was short so I drove to Greensboro to be with her then took her shopping and then out for a nice lunch.  It was a very good day.

Am I Racist?

  There is so much animosity between racist.  Few lay claim to being racist yet what happens in the world and what goes on behind closed doors    shows that racism is more alive than most will admit.  Sometimes we do things that can be deemed racist that we really don't think are but in reality are.  Sometimes we are perceived to have committed a racist act when indeed we did not.  
   I find the same attitudes are prevalent in other areas of life as well.  Most people consider themselves good and yet they regularly practice what the bible labels as sin yet they deny that they are sinners.  Yet the bible says that we all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.
  As long as we live in denial we can never drawn near to God and as long as we live in denial we can never solve the race issue.
  The truth is I am a racist.  It is not always a bad thing and it is a good thing that I admit the truth.  Knowing what I am my nature helps me to take steps to fight my natural instincts and make better decisions.  I am also a sinner.  Recognizing the truth  about myself helps me deal with my sin problem.  I find the best way to deal with both issues is to immerse myself in God's word and put God's word into me.
  By becoming a follower of God I learn how to resist temptations and also how to love my fellow man.  But until we recognize the truth about ourselves, we can never be whom we should be.