In Defense of the Christian Faith

Reason Rally 2012 -- it's probably something you've heard about if you are into Christian apologetics at all (and even if you happen to be a non-believer, you have probably heard of it). It's a rally that wishes to promote "science, secularism, and reason," and it includes such speakers as Richard Dawkins , PZ Myers, and Lawrence Krauss, to name a few. The rally will be held on March 24, the weekend after St. Patrick's Day. But with this celebration of reason comes a challenge to Christianity: the atheistic appeal to "reason" that purports that Christianity is irrational. But is that really true? And is atheism really a rational point of view? Enter True Reason: Christian Responses to the Challenge of Atheism , a new ebook which released yesterday. I have the privilege of reviewing this excellent work. The book --- written by thirteen authors, including Dr. William Lane Craig, Sean McDowell and members of the Christian Apologetics Alliance...

Dear Readers: I am very excited to inform you that today is the official release date for the ebook, True Reason: Christian Responses to the Challenge of Atheism , a book created by several members of the Christian Apologetics Alliance in direct response to the secular Reason Rally that will be held on March 24. I am in the process of reviewing this excellent work, and I highly recommend that you get a copy for yourselves. Whether you're a Christian or a non-believer, this book has some really good arguments demonstrating that Christianity is reasonable and that, while atheists are capable of reasoning, they often do it irrationally despite their claim to reason. Briefly, the book description is as follows: Thirteen authors have teamed up to discuss what the New Atheists mean by reason, where they succeed at it, and how much more reasonable Christianity is at its best than the New Atheism is at its best. Be on the lookout for a review here on the DCFblog ! ...

Harold Camping is best known for his statement that the world would end May 21, 2011 . When that didn't happen, Camping maintained that it would happen October 21, instead... which, if you haven't noticed, is tomorrow! Camping is still maintaining this position; according to a  recent message he gave  to his followers, he stated in part: If he had not kept us from knowing everything that we didn't know, we would not have been able to be used of Him to bring about the tremendous event that occurred on May 21 of this year [ DCFblog note : Camping believes that on May 21st a "spiritual" rapture did indeed take place], and which probably will be finished out on October 21, that's coming very shortly. That looks like it will be at this point, it looks like it will be the final end of everything. Whereas the true believers will quietly receive the new heaven and the new earth. I really am beginning to think as I restudied these matters that there's going to be...

Dear Mr. Camping, I am disheartened to hear that you have again predicted the end of the world – this time on October 21, 2011. I have read numerous articles on your predictions that May 21 st was initially the end of the world; and more importantly, I have read the Bible on the topic, Mr. Camping. I would like to bring to your attention several things which it appears that you missed when researching this in your Bible. First and foremost, in an interview that you did just ten days before May 21st , you stated that the Bible is “very factual.” You also stated elsewhere that you had developed some mathematical equations using the Bible – the book of Genesis particularly –from which you arrived at your conclusions. But stating that the Bible is simply “very factual” would seem to downplay that it is inerrant, being “God-breathed” – “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the m...

With only a few minutes until the 6 PM deadline when Christ returns, according to Harold Camping, I wanted to share a few thoughts on this topic. Firstly, I wonder if Camping may be of Jehovah's Witness background. The Watchtower has been predicting the end of the world for years now and each time they are wrong. Camping even made an identical prediction in 1994 . This would seem to indicate that he is a false prophet according to Deuteronomy 18:22 which states: when a prophet speaks in the name of the LORD, if the thing does not happen or come to pass, that is the thing which the LORD has not spoken; the prophet has spoken it presumptuously; you shall not be afraid of him. ~ Deuteronomy 18:22 What gets me is how Camping could think he can accurately predict the end of the world to the exact time when Jesus clearly said, "“But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father" (Mark 13:32). I find it sad that so many ...

Today marks the 38th anniversary of the Roe v. Wade case which legalized abortion in America. I have never really talked about abortion on this blog before, but today, I make an exception. I believe that abortion is wrong; the Bible says that life is precious -- it is sacred. Too many women have been lied to when they walk into an abortion clinic. They are told that it is just a harmless procedure, and that "it's just a fetus." Excuse me, but "fetus" is Latin for "baby"; yet abortion clinics like Planned Parenthood are making millions of American tax dollars off of this lie! But often, the women who enter such clinics are scared, and they think that having an abortion will alleviate all of their problems. However, the psychological effects of such an action are enormous, as any woman who has experienced an abortion will tell you. That being said, I also believe that if any woman reading this has had an abortion (or is contemplating having one), there...

Tomorrow, I will be kicking off my bi-weekly Inspiring Story link party! In the past, I have posted various Christian stories that I found to be inspiring. I posted these on a weekly basis, and many of them came from portions of books or magazines that I've read. My point in doing this meme is to encourage and build up one another. God does so many good things for us on a daily basis, but sometimes we miss them. However, when we look at the lives of others, or even into our own pasts, it helps us to gain perspective and be encouraged. To make it easier on my readers -- and in particular those of you who wish to participate -- the meme will now be done bi-weekly , starting tomorrow (Friday) and ending Sunday night. All entries must be of the Christian nature. If any submitted story is of the general nature (i.e. does not specifically mention God or Christianity), it must have a godly moral and contain no offensive material. Topics are limitless; among these are: 1) personal testimon...

I will never forget this day 9 years ago. My mother had gone to the local gas station that morning. I was still in my pajamas when she came home anxiously telling us to flip on the television. "That's the trade towers," she said. At the time, I had no idea what that was or what was happening, but my mother explained that a man at the gas station had told her that a plane had just crashed into one of the World Trade Center buildings! As I watched the live news, I saw the second plane hit the second tower! At first, I thought it was a replay; then I realized that this plane had just struck the second tower! My mouth fell open! Although we live in Upstate NY, my father has had frequent business associations with companies down in NYC; as an international banker, he had also known contacts in the World Trade Center and had even made several trips down to NYC. Needless to say, I was stunned. This was too close to home. How could this be happening? The News told us that some Mu...

Hi Everyone! I just wanted to let you all know that I have a new page up called " My Life ," where I hope to share some of the more personal aspects to my life. The first entry is all about my vacation complete with pictures, so be sure to check it out! Thanks and God bless, Miss S.

I just found this amazing article last night: 'God's eye view': Artist uses Google Earth images to recreate parting of Red Sea and Christ's crucifixion . Here is what it's all about: An artist has recreated key scenes from the Bible such as Jesus's crucifixion and the parting of the Red Sea to show what they would have looked like from space. The 'God's eye view' re-enacts moments including Noah's Ark in the floods and Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden as seen from a satellite. James Dive spent more than three months painstakingly researching the Biblical locations on Google Earth. Apparently, he had to mix and match different places on earth to get just the right look... 'None of the images are entirely geographically accurate, as each contains a combination of a number of satellite photos merged together. 'But there are true elements such as the Red Sea in the Moses piece.' Go check out the entire article to see all the pic...

Last month, I posted about the Pennsylvania book on the history of innovations . I stated that I thought it was rather absurd that it states very matter of factly, "Vast tropical swamps covered Western Pennsylvania..." Yeah right... as if they were there to witness the event! I promised to give more evidence against this, but for now, I wanted to post a quote by evolutionist Sir Fredrick Hoyle.... “The likelihood (probability) of the spontaneous formation of life from inanimate matter is one to number with 40,000 noughts after it ... It is big enough to bury Darwin and the whole theory of evolution. There was no primeval soup, neither on this planet nor on any other, and if the beginnings of life were not random, they must therefore have been the product of purposeful intelligence.” (Source: Sir Fredrick Hoyle and Chandra Wickramasinghe, Evolution from Space, New York, New York: Simon & Schuster, 1984, p. 148.) This is from an EVOLUTIONIST, people! You might get some ev...

Leviticus 19:29 "'Do not prostitute your daughter, to cause her to be a harlot, lest the land fall into harlotry, and the land become full of wickedness.'" This past Sunday, I was made aware of the horrific reality of human traffiking. Around the world, children are sold by their parents into a life of slavery, which includes prostitution and other heinous acts -- things which such young children should never have to see, let alone partake of. Why? Because poverty is present in many areas of the world, and human traffiking is a lucrative business. Children as young as 5 to 7 years old are caught in the middle of this endless nightmare! Many times, children are even kidnapped by human traffickers! 12.3 million children are sold into slavery, and every 30 seconds one more precious soul is snatched by this giant! I was also shocked to learn that this is not just happening over in places far away like Cambodia; it is happening right here in my hometown! What especiall...

A while back, I posted about the topic of theistic evolution . I was dumbfounded by the fact that so many Christians could believe in evolution. Why would you even bother to believe in a Divine Creator then? In my post, I by no means considered all angles of this argument; I merely talked about my particular view on the subject in relation to Scripture. Well, I just finished reading an EXCELLENT summary on theistic evolution and why it does not stand to scrutiny entitled "Theistic Problems with Theistic Evolution." It's written by new blogger and current student of apologetics at Biola University, Melissa Travis . Mary Jo Sharp has posted the entire article on her blog, Confident Christianity . I wanted to quote portions of it here along with my thoughts. But please go over to the CC blog and read the article for yourself; it's well worth the read! ---------------- If you have spent time around small children, it’s likely that you are familiar with the shape-sortin...

My good friend, Renee , has awarded my blog with the Sunshine Award (my 2nd award -- and my buddy, The Brickster has also given me this award)! THANK YOU, RENEE AND BRICKSTER! This award is given to those who brighten the day of the receiver; the rules state that he/she is to pass it along to 12 others. So, here are my top 12. (And to the guys: I hope you won't mind that I'm giving you a "flowery" award, but your blogs really do make my day; hope you like it!) 1. Ron @ The Old Geezer - a fun blog full of humor with a moral. This blog definately brightens my day! 2. Brian @ Apologetics 315 - This blog is full of information on Christian apologetics, including reviews, audio clips, and links to other apologetics sites. Whatever information you're looking for in the area of apologetics, Brian will probably have it. Brian has been following my blog since day one, and that makes me smile; hence, I award his blog. Hope you like it, Brian! ;) 3. AL @ S.O...

Hi Everyone, I'm currently doing a little tinkering with my blog, as you can probably tell. I've added some new tabs at the top of the blog, so be sure to check them out. I'm working on how to add a comment box to those (if that's possible -- does anybody know?), so I have transferred my comments to Disqus to try to sort that out. I'm not finished yet, so don't panic if you don't see your comments. I have to run, but I promise I'm still working on it! Thanks for your understanding. UPDATE : With the help of a friend, I have figured out how to add comment boxes to my pages. I also noticed that each new post did not have a comment box; this is now available. So be sure to let me know what you think of my blog -- I love comments! :D I'm still working on the Disqus problems, so please bare with me... ~ Miss S.

I recently read in the VOM (May issue) of a young woman by the name of Esther . Her mother and father are leaders in a church in China. Recently, however, the police dragged off many of the leaders and imprisoned them. Esther's parents were among them. No one is sure where her father is located, but her mother was sentenced to a labor camp in Shanxi province. Esther's mother suffers from arthritis, and she has been sentenced to 15 hours per day of physical labor. On behalf of Esther, VOM requested that everyone send a pre-written letter to Yang, and they sent out six of them with their May newsletter. So what is my dream? I was going to send out my letter after I first decorated it. You know, in labors camps, the people don't usually get to enjoy anything beautiful or colorful. But now, my mission has expanded. As someone who has been greatly touched by the testimonies of the persecuted church, I want to do something more -- something to show them that I love them, greatly ...

Hi, everbody! I apologize for my small absense... I've been online, but I haven't been feeling that well, and that makes me quite tired... Anyway... A few days ago, Jean had a thought-provoking post on her blog about a young boy who made a hat with a small figurine of a soldier because he wanted to show patriotism -- the teacher told his parents that it was "unappropriate" and made him take it off... Jay responded with a quote by John Dewey that got me thinking: "Children who know how to think for themselves spoil the harmony of the collective society which is coming where everyone is interdependent." A website which posted this quote got some interesting comments on it: This man, and his brainless, spineless acolytes did more to destroy American indpendence of mind than any other single person in our history. -- Dougmcr8, Springfield, VA Amen, Douggmcr8! I want Dewey to explain to me just why, in a nation that was founded on the premise of moral IND...