In Defense of the Christian Faith

Here are the DCF blog's top 10 posts of all time (from May 2010 - January 2011) in order of most popular to least popular. Beside each, I have provided a description of the contents. I am aware that a few of these were mentioned in my last post, but those were my favorites; these are YOUR favorites... Enjoy! ----------- 1) Inspiring Story: Dr. Kent Hovind - This is an essay on the Godly character of young-earth-creationist Dr.Kent Hovind. I'm not surprised at all that this made it to the top, since this post generated a lot of comments and traffic (845 searches for "Kent Hovind update," and 44 searches for "Kent Hovind Update 2010"; 914 total pageviews)! I'm grateful to each person who took the time to write a comment in support of Dr. Hovind. 2) Did Pontius Pilate actually exist? - In this post, learn about a remarkable archeaological find that proves that Pontius Pilate exists, lending support to even the small details in the Bible. 3)  Kent H...

I am going to start something new on this blog, a new meme... It's called Inspiring Story. Each week, I'll feature an inspiring story. I know this is "off the beaten path" of apologetics, but one of my missions is to encourage and inspire my readers, so I figure I'll give it a go. Each week, you'll find one of my favorite stories featured. Many of these stories are about trusting in God, which, as many of you know, is a subject dear to my heart. Some are humorous, but most are sobering and challenging, while at the same time, encouraging. Sometimes we forget all the wonderful things that God has done for us or taught us, so I hope that by posting these inspiring stories, we can all be encouraged and be reminded of God's hand in our lives. I believe that telling of all that God has done in our lives is one way of sharing/defending our faith, while at the same time, offering evidence that miracles still do occur in everyday life, because God does exist and H...

It's time for another Inspiring Story. This week, I'd like to share Saad's story. "Saad" is a fifteen-year-old Pakistani who now resides in Florida. For the first few years of his life, he resided in Pakistan -- a predominately Muslim country -- with his Muslim family, until their move to the United States in 1997. The next decade brought with it many changes such as adjusting to American society, making new friends, and watching his mother battle breast cancer. All of these things prompted various emotions and questions that Saad had no answers for. April 16, 2010 is a day that Saad will never forget. He describes it as follows: The world was marked between AD and BC, and now it would mark on April 16th, the most important day of my life. I wonder if I hadn't done anything on that day, would my life be as crazy as it is now? Who knows? Anyways, it was a chat on Facebook, and I just thought I'd talk to Robert for a second. I wish I could have copy and ...

Okay, so I know that I'm a bit late in putting this up, but I promised you all that I was going to have a special Inspiring Story for Thanksgiving. I went through many videos, trying to find just the perfect one, and while it isn't specifically "thanksgiving-ish," I wanted to post it for you all because it is very inspiring. It's a testimony by a Latin Soul Artist named Martin Cantu. The quality isn't the greatest, but the story is awesome! Enjoy! The thought that comes to mind when I hear testimonies like these is just how thankful I am to God for all that He is doing around the world. Sometimes, we get stuck in "our own little worlds," and we fail to see that other people have real needs, too. God is filling that need in amazing ways... let's be the tool -- like Joyce was in this case --through which He does it! Happy Thanksgiving! Do you have a story that you'd like to share? Leave me a comment or link up here: Powered by Linky Too...

Over the last two weeks, I've missed my meme Inspiring Story due to a vacation. But before I share this week's IS, I want to recap the rules and reason for this meme: The purpose of this meme is to encourage you; I believe that each and every thing that the Lord does for us on a daily basis is the biggest evidence for His existence. Therefore, I think we should encourage each other with stories and messages that will keep us uplifted in the Lord, and inspire us to be all that we can for Him. I invite you all to participate in this meme; just keep the content clean and Christian. What has God been doing in your life? I'd love to hear it; if you want to share it on your blog as an inspiriaton to others, just link back here. If you do not have a blog and would still like to share, by all means, comment! I love hearing from you all. So, without further ado, here is the next installment of Inspiring Story on the DCF blog. Enjoy! ---------- Recently, I have had a growing inte...

It's time for another Inspiring Story everyone! Feel free to share your stories using the linky tool below. I found today's story when I was looking for the story behind a beautiful, yet powerful hymn. Here is what I found: -------------------- "Take My Life": Frances Ridley Havergal   by Amos R. Wells Frances Ridley Havergal wrote so many helpful books, and lived a life so earnest and devoted, that she has had a very deep influence over the hearts of Christians. Of all her poems, the one before us meant the most to her, and has meant the most to the world. Miss Havergal was born in Astley, England, December 14, 1836. Her father was an Episcopal clergyman, a skilful composer of music, and himself a hymn-writer. She was baptized by another hymn writer, Rev. John Cawood, who wrote "Hark! what mean those holy voices?" She became also a brilliant singer and piano-player, and a glittering career in society was open before her. But she considered all he...

I read this story yesterday at the Baptist Press and I just had to share it for today's Inspiring Story. The names have been changed (by the authors) for privacy and protection. Enjoy! --------  No one notices the young Chinese woman silently crying in the back pew. It's the only place she finds solace from her deep depression and fear of death. She's not even sure why she sits in this church every afternoon; her communist education and Buddhist religion teach against a belief in God. Yet something keeps drawing Lily Wang here. She pulls a Bible from the pew. It's not in her native Mandarin, but she flips it open anyway. She learned to read a little Thai after moving to Thailand a few years ago to teach school, but she hasn't learned enough to really understand this. So many questions cloud her mind that she finally musters enough courage to speak to a man carrying the same book. He brushes past the petite woman and goes about his business. The rejection ...

It's that time again... time for the Inspiring Story meme! Lately, this meme has been rather sporadic, almost non-existent. That was not my original intention. However the purpose of this meme is to share a story each weekend that will inspire and encourage you. Anyone who would like to join in this meme may do so. Simply feature a true story, a personal testimony, or a story which has a (Godly) moral lesson on your blog. All entries must be of the Christian nature. Then use the "linky" tool, so that others can see your stories. If you do not have a blog, but wish to share a story anyway, you may leave it in the comments box. Thank you. Powered by Linky Tools Click here to enter your link and view the entire list of entered links... -------------------- Today's story comes from an issue of the Voice of the Martyrs (Special Issue -- 2007). Enjoy! Christ the Savior saves many from their hate. In a world of fear and terror, Christian courage reigns supreme. Sandu Fra...

I've been thinking a lot lately about all the missionary "greats," of late, such as Nate Saint and Amy Carmichael, to name a few. All of these paid a high price for obeying God, and this reminded me of some other, perhaps less heard of, Christians who are missionaries to their own countries. I am referring to those persecuted Christians who lay down their lives for Christ every single day. They suffer because they choose to follow Christ rather than obey the world and its customs. Most of these Christians live in countries where religions other than Christianity are allowed, and converting from these "state" religions to Christianity is strictly forbidden. Converting could mean imprisonment, horrendous torture (both mental and physical), or worse -- maybe even death. They are pressured to renounce their faith; but how can they deny the One who paid the ultimate price by dying for them? They are very daring Christians, but they "know whom [they] have believe...

I almost forgot... It's time for another Inspiring Story * . This one comes from Mini Missions Magazine . Enjoy! ----------- During the Mau Mau uprising in Kenya in 1960, missionaries Matt and Lora Higgens were returning one night to Nairobi through the heart of Mau Mau territory, where Kenyans and missionaries alike had been killed and dismembered. Seventeen miles outside of Nairobi their Land Rover stopped. Higgens tried to repair the car in the dark, but could not restart it. They spent the night in the car, but claimed Psalm 4:8: "I will lie down and sleep in peace, for you alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety." In the morning they were able to repair the car. A few weeks later the Higgenses returned to America on furlough. They reported that the night before they left Nairobi, a local pastor had visited them. He told how a member of the Mau Mau had confessed that he and three others had crept up to the car to kill the Higgenses, but when they saw the sixteen m...

It's about time this blog saw another Inspiring Story . (Last time, I missed it due to a day trip I took to PA; so I decided to wait until the next time it rolled around to post...) Here is a story that I saw a while back on CBN, and  I've been wanting to share it for a while. This is the amazing testimony of Clint and Penny Bragg and the one thing that nearly tore their marriage apart -- for 11 years. I hope you all enjoy! Join me March 19-21 for the next installment of Inspiring Story, sharing testimonies of God's faithfulness through which He reveals Himself to us on a daily basis.

Welcome to another addition of Inspiring Story, where the goal is to provide you with a testimony that will encourage you, build up your faith, and demonstrate the power of God. He does exist, and He makes it perfectly clear, many times in our day-to-day lives. Today, I would like to share a few testimonies that I came across randomly (actually, that's not true -- I believe that the Lord led me to them as I was searching for a story this week), but they blessed me so much that I just had to share with my readers. This is the testimony of what God is doing through Heidi Baker and her ministry, Iris Ministries, in Mosambique, Africa. The first, is an interview that CBN did with Heidi. I was deeply encouraged by this one... And here is an amazing testimony of blind eyes seeing: "...One thing I know, that, whereas I was blind, now I see.... Why herein is a marvellous thing, that ye know not from whence he is, and [yet] he hath opened mine eyes. Now we know that God heare...

Welcome to this weeks Inspiring Story, where every other week, the DCF blog shares a story to inspire you in your walk with God. Today, I wanted to present a fascinating story of a man who was raised from the dead. In today's world, many atheists claim that because no one has every risen from the dead, the Resurrection of Jesus did not really happen. Of course, they claim that if evidence of people being raised from the dead were documented and presented to them, they would believe it (and we do have that in the four Gospel accounts, by the way).  Since we are approaching Easter --the day when we celebrate the Resurrection of Jesus -- that objection may be raised by someone you know. Therefore, I wanted to share the story of Daniel -- a documentary on one man who was miraculously raised from the dead. This is actually a six part documentary on his story, so I strongly advise that you go here to watch the whole thing . Please do not let the time allotment stop you from ...

The following is an excerpt from Rhema's The Word of Faith magazine. Mike Keyes is a 1980 graduate of Rhema and he has a ministry based in the Philippines. His testimony is amazing; I found how he got started in his ministry to be fascinating -- you can read it here . His ministry's Scripture is Mark 16:15-18: "Go into all the world and preach the Gospel..." Today, I'd like to share this portion of his story for Inspiring Story. ------------- For two-and-a-half years Mike worked for [another] ministry teaching in the Bible school, holding crusades, and traveling throughout the islands ministering to as many churches as possible. Preaching in churches, getting people saved and healed, and casting out demons was the easy part. The hard part, many times, was getting to the churches."We would wade rivers, hike up mountains, and sleep on the ground using the Bible as a pillow," he said. "Many times it would be pouring rivers of mud, and we'd be on ...

For today's Inspiring Story, I will try to keep it short and sweet. Although I think the story I will present is inspiring in and of itself, I wanted to share a few related things that will make it even more inspiring (well, it did for me, anyway). So here goes... Today, we focus on Irena Sendlerowa. She was a Polish woman who worked as a social worker for the Nazis during the 1900s, when Hitler was having his "reign." As social worker to the Warsaw Ghetto, she made it her job to rescue as many Jewish children as she could! She knew that if they remained there, they would all be killed by the Nazis. And rescue them, she did! Armed with a tool box and a trunk, she would smuggle children out of the prison; the smaller children were placed in a tool box, and the larger children were placed in the trunk. She managed to evade the Nazi guards detection by using her trusty dog as a cover; whenever a Nazi guard came near, her dog was trained to bark! This created some frustratio...

Welcome to the Inspiring Story link party! If this is your first time participating, be sure to check out the rules and detail for this meme here . To kick off the now bi-weekly meme, I would like to share an amazing story that I found via Mini Missions Magazine . This is a testimony from P.G. Vargis, of Indian Evangelical Team . I found it to be truly inspiring, and it also poses quite a challenge to us as Christians. Be sure to let me know what you think! ------------ THE TRAIN CAME BACK In the early 70’s when we were pioneer missionaries in Katra, in the Himalayan Mountains of Kashmir it was a hard and difficult life, often filled with hunger and poverty. One day I was returning to Katra with an orphan boy. Our train arrived in Delhi railway station at about 3:00 PM and I was to catch the train (Jhelum Express) to Jammu from Delhi at 9:00 PM, and then go by bus from Jammu to Katra, our mission station. After the train arrived in Delhi , I took things easy since there ...

Well, it's time for another Inspiring Story! If you would like to participate in this meme, check the rules and details , and be sure to link up! This week, I'd like to share another testimony from The Jesus Film Project... God is certainly using that ministry in amazing ways. This one comes from the August newsletter. God Reveals Himself to an Arab man Tameem, as I will call him, sensed that something was deeply wrong. He lived in a closed nation, wasn't satisfied spiritually, and could not find peace. Thus began his search for God. First, he went to his local religous leader, asking: "Who is the true God? How can I find peace?" The leader replied, "I cannot help you. To know the secrets of our religion you must first become a 'monk' like me." Tameem went to his community's house of prayer where he bowed on the floor and prayed earnestly. He felt and experienced nothing. His subsequent attempts to find peace all failed. That's w...

Today's Inspiring Story is short and light-hearted (to a certain extent), but there is still a good lesson to be learned, so I wanted to share it with you all. This story was related by Rod Parsley, pastor of World Harvest Church (founded by Lester Sumerall). I have related it in my own words for your reading pleasure... It was an "ordinary" day (if you can call a day in the life of Lester Sumerall "ordinary"). Lester Sumerall was in his room, when suddenly everything began to shake! Lester recognized the shaking as the presence of the devil, so he stood up on his bed and began to command him to leave in Jesus Name. Everything was shaking so violently, that his bed, which had been in the corner of the room, landed in the room's center! As Lester continued to command the demon to leave, the room became calm and the shaking stopped! At this point in the story, Rod Parsley stopped and said, "Most of you would have stopped right there and written a book...

The wait is over, folks! ;) I'm FINALLY getting around to posting this weeks Inspiring Story... thanks for your patience. Today, I'd like to focus on Angus Buchan, a Scottish-African who resides in South Africa. A man of extraordinary character and faith, his is a very interesting story, and I could go on and on about how much I admire him. Therefore, I will say this much: he is best known for his book and movie " Faith Like Potatoes " (which was the best video I have ever seen). His website tells a brief version of the story, for those interested. (If you click on the movie title above, you can also see a trailer.) Some of my readers have already seen the movie (and if you haven't, I highly recommend it), so today, I'm going to focus on a recent newsarticle pertaining to Angus Buchan... According to the local news, News24 , on April 6, 2009: The popular South African evangelist, Angus Buchan, collapsed on Saturday, shortly after his morning service at ...

Time for another Inspiring Story! Anyone is welcome to participate, but be sure to check out the guidelines first. Powered by Linky Tools Click here to enter your link and view the entire list of entered links... The following is a repost of an essay that I wrote on God's existence using the remarkable story of a Vietnamese Christian. I was reminded of it while considering my recent post, "Faith: The Stumbling Block." Enjoy! ----------------- Today’s Inspiring Story is an essay I wrote recently about Between Two Tigers, a book published by the Voice of the Martyrs. I am aware that to a skeptic this might not be enough “proof” that there is a God. However, it goes along so well with what I was talking about...: that only when our hearts are pure will we see the Lord. Some people think they’re sincere when they say, “If God exists, prove it to me!” And then when you show them, they shoot down everything you say with their own arguments. This, to me, says that...