In Defense of the Christian Faith

Recently, on my twitter page , I mentioned that I was going to get a free book about a Chinese woman who spent 20 years in a labor camp for her faith in Christ. Well, look what finally arrived... and it also comes with a free magazine, courtesy of Christian Aid! Those of you that know me well know that I LOVE reading these books; they give one such a perspective on life. Could we honestly endure 20 years in a labor camp? It's very sobering, but it challenges my faith to "go deeper." It inspires me to be all that I can be for God! Review coming soon, so stay tuned! And hey, why not grab your free copy ? :D Meanwhile, I can't wait to curl up in bed with my book and read away! ;)

Today is my first time joining in a meme called " Smile Sunday ." I'm going to try my hand at this, while still staying within the borders of this blog's topic, apologetics. I do hope you will all find it interesting, and hopefully, encouraging. Let me know what you think! Here it goes... I once heard a little story that went something like this: There once was a big building in the city. If someone were to be passing by this particular building, here is what he would see: On one side, someone had graffitied [Is that even a word? I guess it is now!] these words: "God is dead ~ Nietzsche." A classic saying, is it not? Apparently, someone didn't think so; on the other side was graffitied, "Nietzsche is dead ~ God." :D So why does this make me smile? Well, obviously, the joke is kind of funny on it's own. But seriously, Nietzsche thought that he had a better way than God. So did Hitler. So did Mussolini. The Communists thought that to win t...

The following is another essay that my brother wrote (yes, he is a good essayist! :D). This time, it centers on Lew Wallace. While reading it, I was reminded of a post that I did last December on this (for Inspiring Story, ironically!). I think my brother covered most of what was mentioned there, but the article which I referenced in my post gave a little more detail in certain areas. Anyway, I find Lew's story to be a great inspiration! Enjoy! -------- Lew Wallace: Life and Legacy Although Lewis “Lew” Wallace served as a governor, lawyer, American statesman and Union general (Wikipedia), he is best known for his works of literature. And of his seven works, he is most remembered for Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ , ironically written from his search of the Christ. Wallace's realization that he did not know his own religion set him on a journey to find out who God was. Lew Wallace was born in 1827. His mother died when he was seven, and his father soon became a ...

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...

"For behold this selfsame thing, that ye sorrowed after a godly sort, what carefulness it wrought in you, yea, what clearing of yourselves, yea, what indignation, yea, what fear, yea, what vehement desire, yea, what zeal, yea, what revenge! In all things ye have approved yourselves to be clear in this matter." ~ 2 Corinthians 7: 11 This week, I'd like to talk about godly sorrow. Some people think that when they feel sorry for their sins, that this is godly sorrow; but it is usually condemnation or guilt, because godly sorrow produces repentance. And that is what I'd like to talk about today. I apologize for the length of this post, but I assure you all that it is well worth the read; take it in small bites if you'd like! Let me know what you think! The literal translation of this Scripture is as follows: "For behold this selfsame thing, that ye sorrowed after a godly sort, what diligence (haste) it wrought in you, yea, what excuse (separation), yea, what d...

I just received a Living Water's Newsletter (Do you receive them? If not, you should!), and I was excited to see this: “Dear Ray, I am an atheist. I have read much of your blog, from its innocent beginnings, to the turning point of the atheists flooding the comment pages… and as I read the hateful things the atheists say to/about you and God, I want to assure you that we are not all so closed-minded and hateful. I appreciate everything you are trying to do for us. I admire your unwavering faith, your tolerance and humor, and I know you will never give up on the atheists! Thank you for opening my mind.” ~R. I am aware that there are other likeminded atheists out there; however, each time I see a truly open-minded atheist , it is so refreshing. For the most part, all you ever see are those who may or may not claim to be open-minded as they search for the truth, and then they pick apart everything that you say. So I'm glad to see that there are some sincere atheists out there...

Last week, I talked about Richard Wurmbrand and how he forgave his torturer, resulting in that man's salvation. This week, I would again like to use Richard as an example for today's Inspiring Story. I've read the Voice of Martyrs magazines cover-to-cover, because they present the heroic actions of people who have given their all for Christ no matter what the cost. Lately, I've been re-reading some older VOM magazines. Here is an excerpt from the December 2005 issue... --------------- Seventy Christians came together for the secret prayer meeting. It was dangerous to have so many gathered together, but tonight was a special night. They were saying good-bye to their pastor and his wife and son who were leaving the country the next morning. The pastor's family could have left some 20 years earlier, before the inevitable oppression came upon them in full force, but they chose to stay and serve. However, the years of prison and torture had taken their toll, and another ...