The very first stop on anyone's journey to living into his or her fullest potential is to decide why he/she believes the way he/she does. This specific blog is written through the glasses of a Christian that also values intelligence.
Everyone has a reason as to why they believe the way they do, obviously. However, I am boldly challenging you here to reconsider why it is that you do or not believe in Christianity? Do you have doubts about the religion because you experienced traumatic happenings from people who called themselves Christians? Have you prayed something important to you and watched the opposite happen? Are there issues in your life that no one has sat down to help you work through and you blame God for not sending anyone?
On the other side of the coin, it is also important to know why you DO believe!
Today before coming home from work to sit at the computer desk in the kitchen and write this, someone I work with literally said, "I'm not a 'Bible thumper' by any means, but I got to church because I was raised in the church." All I could do was simply listen with a loving smile on my face and look forward to coming home to type this up for you all. So, do you believe because your parents did? Do you, "drink the Kool-Aid?" Do you go to church because you want to earn worthiness or love? Do you go to church for the fellowship? Or, do you know why you believe what you believe?
Whatever answer you have to the above-listed questions is not to be judged at all.
The questions are simply to encourage you to be introspective and to begin again to build a really solid, and long-lasting foundation that will not be moved with the things our generations and the generations after us are going to experience.
I do not intend or strive to convince anyone to believe in Jesus, because only the Holy Spirit can be the one to draw people to their salvation (John 6:44). I would like to share, however, as an intellectual, a summary of the three things that brought me to true, intimate, salvation, and maybe one of them will speak to you!
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I was conceived, in part due to the prayer of a pastor at an Assembly of God Church, where my mom took me to attend until I was 6. I attended several Catholic masses and also a few different Baptist churches. I have relative pastors of Pentecostal Holiness churches, and I have Buddhist family members. I had friends that claim to be Atheists. Without explaining any further, you can see that my little teenage mind was confused as to what decision of religion would be the best decision to make. My personal journey into viewing many different religions from a distance began there. It was my mission as a 12 and 13-year-old to set out to pinpoint which religion proved to be the most consistent and contained the most truth. Evidently, after my research, I chose to become a die-hard, sold-out Christian!
You are most likely wondering at this point what I discovered that caused me to lean into the belief system I have a tight hold on to now. As Brene‘ Brown states in her famous Ted Talk on Vulnerability, when I go into my researcher mode, I go into this "Jackson Pollock, crazy thing." When I was in my, "researcher" mode, I discovered many points, two of which I will list here. First, we learn from reading The Case of Christ, and credible articles that the Bible is recorded and held in regard by archeologists, therefore it is trustworthy. In contrast, many of the stories that we are told in history classes, to this day, are based on written documents that have very little credibility.
For example, as Mr. Lee Strobel shares, the story of Alexander the Great. His story of being taught by Aristotle and overthrowing many of his enemies by gaining the favor of great military leaders, and thus becoming one of the greatest kings ever known to Greece, is based on documentation of him that was not even recorded until four centuries after the events were claimed to have happened. That is shocking to me. SHOCKING. Side note, I love to fish, but we all know that the fish gets bigger every single time the story of catching it is told. Therefore, how misconstrued would the story of Alexander be by the time it was finally recorded, over four hundred years later? (Just a thought).
In major contrast, the four gospels of the New Testament are proven to all to have been written during the same century that Jesus walked the earth.
What’s your personal story?
Everyone has a testimony of when they personally experienced Jesus, and that is what usually seals the deal. I would love to hear about your experience.
If you have not had that personal experience, please let us know so we can pray for you. You WILL!
Jesus can’t wait to spend time with you.
~Blessings as you walk through your amazing journey
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