God’s Recycling Program

In our perpetual quest for logical evidence that God is real and responsible for our existence, we tend to overlook some of the most compelling evidence.

Many aspects of our world become so familiar that we cease to recognize the miraculous nature of those elements. We take for granted that the sun will rise each morning and the moon will cycle through its phases each month. When the snows melt and the days become warmer, we anticipate another growing season.

When we fall asleep each night, we do so confident that we will awake the next morning. We are confident that we will continue to breathe through the night.

So much of our existence relies on the repetitive cycle of nature that we fail to recognize the possibility of intelligent design behind those events.

So, where does the concept of God fit into this equation? Continue reading

God’s Laws of Attraction – Part Two

As we continue our quest to find logic in faith, we begin to acknowledge and explore forces in nature that defy logic. As a consequence, it leads us toward the higher probability of  a supernatural force we call God.

We looked at the incredibly powerful force of gravity, and how that mysterious force helps create the environment that allows us to exist and, conveniently, keeps our feet on the ground.

But there is another force of attraction even more powerful than gravity. It is a force that also allows us to exist, but has the ability to end our existence as well. It is a force that allows all matter to exist.

When we explored the force of gravity, we were considering a force on a massive scale – the power to hold entire planets in orbit about our sun. Yet it is a force we can easily measure with simple tools. It is a force we can easily counteract (to a degree).

So, what is this force that is more powerful than gravity? Continue reading

God’s Laws of Attraction – Part One

Some of the miracles that we experience daily can’t be explained by science. Science may describe the effects, but can’t quite offer a credible explanation for the cause.

Perhaps the most common miracle we are all familiar with is the effect of gravity. It is so common, so familiar, that we seldom give it a thought unless we are standing on the edge of a tall building, or even the top of an unsteady ladder. At that point, we are keenly aware of the force of gravity and the potential consequences if we disregard the hazard it represents.

Even more common, we expect that when we set that cup of coffee down, it will rest where we placed it and the liquid will remain inside and not go floating away.

The effects of gravity are so familiar that we fail to recognize the miraculous nature of this force.

Science would call it a force of nature or one of the “laws” of the universe.

But, pure science fails to address the question of who or what created the laws of the universe or the forces of nature. Perhaps the simplest explanation is that gravity is merely the most obvious example of God’s laws of attraction.

And that coffee cup on the table is just the beginning. Continue reading

God’s Tiny Team

When we consider the likelihood that we exist because of the work of a Creator, our questions become clouded by a combination of views – both the “big picture” and the minute details. Either view is distorted by the other being out of focus.

We’ve all  heard the expression “can’t see the forest for the trees,” but we need to flip that expression around to read “can’t see the trees for the forest.” We need to move in and focus on the microscopic trees that make up that forest.

In other words, when we look at the “big picture” of our existence, we easily lose sight of the complex combination of microscopic elements that function to keep us alive.

We spend a great deal of effort dodging harmful bacteria by washing, disinfecting, cooking and sterilizing. When that doesn’t work, we engage in chemical warfare against the microscopic enemy by way of antibiotics.

In the process, we may be killing off some of God’s tiny team of benefactors. It is one of the reasons that the medical community is hesitant to get too heavy-handed with antibiotics. Killing off the “good” bacteria can have disastrous consequences.

So, how does this fit into God’s plan? Continue reading

God’s Magical Chemistry

The very foundation of any religion is the belief in a higher power. Those of us who identify most closely as Christian call this higher power God. In its simplest, most basic interpretation, we acknowledge God as the creator of all we observe.

Yet, while we may acknowledge God the Creator as a concept, we are forced to acknowledge science as a fact that we have witnessed. We have seen materials consumed by fire. We have seen liquid water become a solid – ice. We have seen craters on the moon and heard the hum of electricity.

We have come to know faith by repetition of tales in the Bible. Faith whispers to us over and over again until we accept it as truth.

Science shouts at us. Science challenges us to think. Science dares us to judge by the evidence and arrive at a verdict. Science demands that we use that clump of grey matter that dwells in our skull. Continue reading

God’s Plan for You

It’s a common expression, a common hope, a common theme. God has a plan for your life, a purpose for your existence. And finding or recognizing your purpose is a common struggle.

Logically, there’s just one big problem with this hopeful sentiment. It is in direct conflict with the premise that God gave humans free will.

What if God has a task for you, but your response is “thanks, but no thanks. I’ll pass?” What if you exercise your free will to decline God’s invitation? Does God have a plan B? Does God have a list of candidates to replace you?

Is there a penalty for refusing to participate? Do you even have the option to choose another path?

The logical answers to most of these questions are actually quite evident in the Bible. And you are already familiar with most of them. Continue reading

View of Heaven

The ultimate goal of Christianity is to be admitted to heaven after our physical death. There, we expect to be reunited with loved ones who have passed before us, and live in peace and unending joy in the company of our Creator.

Recently, there have been a number of books and films that claim to represent the true experience of someone who has visited heaven but returned to earthly life. And many of these accounts have elements in common.

Bright white light and vibrant colors are common. Likewise, a sense of peace and comfort is common. Frequently, those who claim such an experience will reveal that they had no desire to return to their earthly life.

Yet, no two descriptions are totally identical. This might cause us to question – is heaven a “place,” or a state of existence?

A combination of logic and science may suggest an answer. Continue reading

Logic of Sin

The theme of sin as our universal downfall is central to the Christian message. What, exactly, constitutes sin has been up for debate for centuries. While many would quote the original Ten Commandments as the defining authority, the variations and interpretations of that resource only serve to confuse the issue further. In short, its not that simple.

In its purest definition, we might consider sin to be any act that is contrary to the standards of behavior established and expected by God. And certainly the Ten Commandments provides a pretty good framework for the patterns of behavior we are expected to embrace.

In fact, there is probably no other concept in the Bible where logic meshes so completely with the message than the idea of sin and the Ten Commandments.

But to appreciate the logic of those commandments, we need to look deeper.

The final five commandments are probably the most familiar and the most often quoted. From the logic perspective, they are also the key to understanding the concept of sin. Each of those final five is clearly a moral or ethical consideration. Each of those commandments represents an area of potential conflict.

Avoiding conflict is essential to the cooperative interaction of the human species. Yet conflict seems to be one of the most universal elements of our existence. If we reflect on the amount of conflict in human history, it is a wonder that we even exist at all.

Digging deeper into these critical commandments, our logic reveals that each of them represents a condemnation of human greed and selfish behavior. At the same time, our logic acknowledges that each is also a recognition of undesirable human traits, and the need for rules to keep those traits in check.

If we step back and view the miracle of our existence – from the tilt of the earth’s axis, to the precise distance from the sun, to the weather patterns and the perpetual recycling of earth’s resources and thousands of other perfect conditions – we can see that our selfish behavior is the one element that is out of sync with the perfection of our world.

Ironically, it is also the one thing over which we have control. Perhaps it is the one thing we need to master to even approach our potential of  human perfection on a par with our perfect world.

Suddenly, the definition of sin becomes clear. We need not complicate the concept by assigning a “score” to it.

Sin is simply any behavior that is contrary to the perfection God would wish us to achieve.

The final irony is that, in creating us in His image, God accepted the ultimate trade-off. He gave us free will, and with it the ability to make choices in our behavior.

Then He gave us the rules.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dealing With Grief

I sat in the very last row of a packed chapel during the funeral service. It was a gesture of respect for those who were closer to the deceased. I barely knew her. My presence was a result of the coincidence of association by marriage.

Yet, as the service proceeded, I felt my eyes brim with tears as I felt the pain of those in the room who were more directly impacted by this loss. The feeling of grief was like a cloud that settled gently across the room, affecting all who attended the service.

My heart ached as I watched the daughter step up to the podium and bravely play her part in the ceremony honoring her mother. Tragically, she had lost her father barely a year earlier.

For a moment, I remembered when I was close to her age and was thrust into adulthood when my mother assigned me the task of making the funeral arrangements for my father. In addition to my grief at the time, I remember being frightened and unprepared for this unwanted adult responsibility.

Now it was her turn, and my heart ached for this brave, traumatized young woman. I could only pray that the power of the love that filled that room would fill her with hope and comfort.

And like so many others in the room, like so many others over the centuries, I questioned – why do we need to suffer so? How can a loving God subject us to such pain? Why do we have to endure the death of our loved ones? Continue reading

The Easter Event and the Proof

There is little doubt that Easter represents what could be considered the most important event in human history. It is, of course, the bedrock foundation of Christianity.

If it is true.

Obviously, this whole death/resurrection thing is contrary to human experience. Even those of us who consider ourselves to be believers must concede that the resurrection – the culmination of those critical days – is the hardest part to accept. Non-believers, of course, reject that scenario entirely.

If we apply our logic filter to this critical question, how do we justify our belief in so incredible a narrative?

In judging the Easter events, we encounter a couple of profound facts. And those facts provide logical credence to support the accuracy of that historic moment. Continue reading