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"Letters, we get letters.
We get stacks and stacks of letters...."

-from the Perry Como Show, 1957/1958


Thank you for reading On My Way To Faith. I hope you will feel free to leave a comment, a thought, recommend a book, etc. Whether you found this blog on purpose or by accident, it is a way for us to connect through a common interest. If you like what you are reading here, please pass it on.


Something else I am going to start doing is add a "Recommended Reading" note at the bottom of each post when there is a particular book that is connected to the subject I am writing about. Reading is a passion of mine and book-buying is an addiction. I'm always looking for books on faith and have come across some interesting and important books to inspire thought and build upon what I have learned. I also love history and biography, so, I'll pass those titles along too.


--DL

Why Wouldn't You?

There are some books on the market that I absolutely do not understand. They are books that question faith, the existence of God and assert that Jesus Christ was “just a man.” Now, a disclosure here, I haven’t read any of the books and honestly don’t want to. If that makes me close-minded, well, so be it. The reason is that my mind is made up. I have been through all of the “Is God Real?” questions for myself and I am convinced. I believe what I have learned about faith is the absolute truth. Jesus died for our sins. He took it all upon himself to bring us into a close, loving relationship with God. God is real. That simple. Accepting the love of God and the love of Christ places one in the protection of Unconditional Love. It is a love with no strings, no restrictions, no mistakes. Unconditional. Who would not want that?

It seems people like Christopher Hitchens and Bill Maher want nothing of it. Sam Harris doesn’t want it. Richard Dawkins doesn’t want it. Dawkins, author of “The God Delusion”, argues that “atheists should be proud, not apologetic, because atheism is evidence of a healthy, independent mind.”¹ Wait a minute. Atheism is evidence of a healthy, independent mind? So, I suppose those of us who have faith and believe are blockheads? Hardly. Most people of faith I know put a lot of thought, study, analysis, and well, work, into their faith. They (we) read books, get online and study websites, discuss topics with friends and try to broaden our knowledge of faith, what it means and how it can affect our lives. Faith is not a casual decision. It is life changing and never ending. It presents challenges and tests every day. To me, atheism is the easy way out.

There are some people who seem that they don’t want to believe anything. Bill Maher is one of them. He recently released a movie called, “Religulous.” It’s a movie that probably six people have gone to see. Bill, nice guy that he is, admits using deception to gain interviews with his subjects for the movie. "We never, ever, used my name. We never told anybody it was me who was going to do the interviews. We even had a fake title for the film. We called it 'A Spiritual Journey.' It didn't work everywhere. We went to Salt Lake City, but no one would let us film there at all."² We all know people like Bill. He’s, you know, just one of those guys that you let ramble on and then you think, ‘How can he believe such nonsense.’ Bill’s in for a big surprise someday. They all are.

The problem with this kind of thinking, and this is just my opinion, is as much as I believe in faith, I also believe in free will. That is, make up your own mind. Bill and Christopher and Richard and Sam have come to their own conclusions. That’s fine with me, but I think there is a greater issue at hand here, which brings me back to an earlier statement in this post, “Why wouldn’t you?” Simply reading the Bible has opened my eyes to so many things. I call it the “World’s Greatest Self-Help Book.” My gosh, if you going to listen to Dr. Phil, why on earth wouldn’t you give the Bible a chance? The answers are all there and there were confirmations of things in the Bible that I always believed, and the Bible backed me up. Amazing. Reading C.S. Lewis, Lee Strobel, James P. Moore, Jr’s, fantastic, “One Nation Under God,” and other books about God, faith, religion, the who, what, when, where, why, and how of it all, has cleared my mind of so much worry, doubt (about myself, not God), disappointment and failure, that I don’t believe it could have been done any other way. And that is what faith is to me. That is why it is called faith. You have to believe it yourself. You have to find the answers on you own. Do the work. Do the reading. Study. Ask. Question. Learn. Do it, and I believe you will come to the same conclusion that I have. This relationship that we are offered with Christ is truly a great one. Notice I said offered. Remember, free will. You don’t have to accept his promise, his word, or even himself. But I believe if you do, you will have a much more settled life, a life you can “handle” with less worry. You will recognize disappointments, life’s ups and downs as a fact of life, and this relationship with Christ will help you through it.

Why on earth would you want to do it alone?

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Source Material:

1 Wikipedia. Richard Dawkins. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Dawkins

2 Wikipedia. “Religulous,” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religulous#cite_note-10. (Additional Source:

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/the_big_picture/2008/08/bill-maher-hate.html

Recommended Reading:

"The Case for Christ," and "The Case for Faith," by Lee Strobel

"One Nation Under God," by James P. Moore, Jr.

"Mere Christianity," by C.S. Lewis

John McCain's America

Note: This is a little off topic, but I wanted to give you my impressions of the election. 

John McCain lost in his effort for the presidency. Probably for the last time. For a man who spent most of his life serving his country, this had to hurt. But for many people, McCain represents a different time in America. A friend of mine told me that McCain’s time had come and gone. Bill O’Reilly said that McCain ran a campaign from twenty years ago. This could be true. I thought that there were many times when McCain barked, he should have bitten. He took total responsibility for his loss. “The failure is mine, not yours,” he said. 

I voted for McCain. But, I’ll be honest here. I knew he was a U.S. Senator, I knew he was held prisoner in Hanoi. But beyond that, the politics, I didn’t know that much more about this great man. I didn’t until the last five minutes of his speech at the Republican Convention. The last five minutes did it for me. When he repeatedly urged us to stand up for America and fight. It brought me to tears. From that instant, I feel like I understood John McCain. Whatever the challenges and mistakes we make as a country, whatever the pundits, personalities and bloggers say, we are still the best in the world. “The Last Best Hope,” as Abraham Lincoln said.

As you know, I read a lot of history, and I often say that you don’t have to read much history to get a real feel for what America is. It is a miracle we are here, living in the country we have. I absolutely believe that God has blessed this country over and over again and has placed in power the leaders we have needed for that moment. No, we don’t as a country, and as a voting public, get everything right. We’re not going to and it does no good to beat ourselves up over losing or gloating over winning. The system worked, and for whatever reasons there are for voting against Barack Obama, he won, and now we must look forward with open eyes and hearts. For me, that is being an American. Because to wish Obama failure, to me, is bad for the country. But should he fail in his efforts, the system will work again, and someone else will get the job in four years. 

Obama is right about one thing. The politics in this country must change. The pure evil against the candidates, on both sides, from bloggers, what we have seen on television, and heard on the radio, is hard for me to understand. This isn’t the America we should expect of ourselves. We’re better than this. 

I voted for McCain, and I would do it again. There was something else about John McCain that stood out for me. John McCain is the only person running for president that has had America taken away from him. Just imagine for a moment that America is gone. I think if more people could experience what John McCain experienced for five years they would feel different, they would understand just what this country is, and means. But you don’t have to spend five years in prison being tortured like John McCain was to understand what we have and what we take for granted. You can just read a little history. 

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Recommended Reading: "1776," by David McCullough; "The Last Best Hope," by William J. Bennett. Take some time and read some history. It will enrich your life. -DL