Do you believe?

I told you that you would die in your sins; if you do not believe that I am he, you will indeed die in your sins.” (John 8:24 NIV)

I got a question the other day from a high school student, asking if I believed in Santa Claus. My stock answer is yes. To not believe in Santa Claus is tantamount to not believing in Christmas. From the secular view, you can't believe in Christmas without Chris Kringle. Our view point, how the jolly old elf might look changes over the years, but we always believe in him. 

More important than believing in Santa Claus, you can't believe in Christmas without believing in Jesus Christ. Forget Santa, Jesus is where Christmas turns magical. You never look at Christmas the same way after you accept Jesus in your life. To think the creator of all things would choose to come to Earth, to be with us, in the form of a baby, is miraculous and filled with wonder. 

Believing in the baby is just the start. In order to have eternal life we must believe that little baby went on to die for us, for our sins. It's the only way. Christmas only makes sense if we follow the story to the death and resurrection. I pray you and your family will believe in the whole story of the birth, life, death and resurrection of Jesus!

You don't have to throw your brains in the trash to follow Christ!

The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. (John 1:14 NIV)

I am nearing the conclusion of my summer bible study about why I believe. It's been wonderful. I have to admit that, publicly, with non-believers, I haven't been very confident in my faith. It's not that I didn't trust God, I didn't doubt his existence, and I believe, but my faith has been weak. This summer I realized why? I have been listening to much to the world and their "facts" that God doesn't exist. After this study (Why I believe - Chip Ingram) I am inspired by the amount of overwhelming evidence their is to the truths of the bible, creation, Jesus, and the existence of MY God, the one, true, God. 

I am a mathematician, lover of science, and an amatueur history buff. I always felt a struggle between these three passions and my faith. Now I know, as Chip Ingram states, "You don't have to throw your brains in the trash to be a follower of Christ!" I always felt the quiet need to apologize for my faith in front of my learned colleagues. I am no expert scientist, nor historian, published mathematician, or famous theologian. But, now I know of people who are all of those things that have dug deep and come to the absolute, logical conclusion, that the Bible is accurate, and verifiably true, beyond any reasonable doubt, that evolution and the Big Bang are greater leaps of faith than my beliefs, and that historical records can back up the existence of MY GOD and the faith I subscribe. We all have faith choices to make. We believe in the God of the Bible, or we have faith in some other theory. We can deny the facts before us. But, there has never been a doubt in my life as I look at the impact MY GOD has had on my life.

I can't say it any stronger: I believe God created the Universe, he sent his Son to die for us that we may live with him forever in eternity and he has forgiven all my sins by his death on the cross. He has sent the Holy Spirit to guide and be forever present in my daily life and he has given us his Holy word to help us know of his love for us and plan for our lives. 

I KNOW it to be true!

Seeing is not believing

Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, (1 Peter 1:8 NIV)

I have never seen Jesus. Sure, I've seen pictures. I've watched movies about Jesus and have a sense of what he looks like only through those sources. But I don't really have any idea of who he is physically. It doesn't matter. I have never thought my faith was on shaky ground because I haven't seen Jesus. I talk about seeing Jesus when I die. But, beyond that, it's just not important. I love him just as if we physically saw each other every day.

The thought of Jesus and the life we have shared brings great joy to my heart. I know he is there because I can feel and see his presence. Just like the wind. I feel the wind, I see it's impact on the environment, yet I can't see it. Praise God he is active, he is alive in my life. I love you Lord. You are amazing and I enjoy every day we spend together. I look forward, not just to seeing you, but being with you in eternity. Amen!