Growing Pains

You probably wouldn't jump off a cliff without a parachute, so why what might make you want to dive head first into full-fledged faith in God and Jesus without some sort of "parachute," some assurance that you will have a safe landing. Where's the proof?

Some have been brought up in a family of faith, in a church where the Lord is clearly present, and been aware and sure of the gospel and of God's power for as long as they remember. That certainly isn't to say they are happy-go-lucky and carefree; as Christians every one of us has challenges and responsibilities to strengthen our faith and spread the Word. But others may constantly wrestle with the thought that atheism may be reality, that the Bible is irrelevant or "inaccurate," or that even if there is one single God that Christianity doesn't exactly have "it" all down pat. Even more have smaller doubts that a specific verse is no longer valid, that the kind of wholehearted discipleship described in the Bible isn't for all Christians, that a serious, personal relationship with God isn't possible for all Christians. All of those concerns can be scary for their victims, so how can we be so sure? How do we know that WE are right? I think the best medicine for such growing pains is Truth, plain and simple.

I'm certainly not an expert on the subject. I'm not a preacher, a Biblical scholar, or a Christian well-versed enough to spout out passages as they apply. But I can certainly share all the things that helped me understand the truth, the reality, and the never-ending validity of Christianity.

I can't cover all of that in one post. I could probably compile a big fat book of sources that show the proof of Christianity. I may even spend all week sharing, just to we can be reminded of how strong of a foundation we stand onl So let's just start with one guy we probably all recognize: Kirk Cameron... Or maybe Mike Seaver in your mind. A ha, maybe now you understand the pun in the title. Couldn't resist.

Kirk was an atheist until his late teenage years when one day he asked God to make himself apparent, if in fact He was real. Kirk has made a huge impact on American evangelism through his books, movies, and his ministry (The Way of the Master). From here, I will let you discover his resources on your own. It's probably more than you can cover in one day... Kirk has created endless resources for Christians. He's not the ultimate source, but he has created a lot of good material in my view. If you're not in the mood for an hour of web surfing, I challenge you to at least watch the clip from his movie, Fireproof.

I may end up writing another whole post on the movie (I'm just choosing my topics day-by-day, wherever He leads me), but after watching it, I was pleasantly surprised to discover that it's not just for troubled married couples wanting to the The 40 day Love Dare. The clip I'm sharing applies to every one of us... And boy o boy was it a huge light bulb for me. A huge, humbling, surprisingly simple light bulb. Watch it. You'll be glad you did.

I pray for each of you that you grow more assured in the Christian faith. Cause it's real, serious, provable, relevant, and the only way. Dive into discovering this reality.

Chapter 1 of Kirk's book, Still Growing

I hope you all share your reactions to the links and share what helped you understand the truth of Christianity. How did you know? What was your light bulb?

The Way of the Master Ministry  Full of great free tools and is a great tool itself for evaluating what being a Christian really means.

The Way of the Master on Youtube I particularly encourage you to watch the videos from the Rational Response debate with Kirk Cameron. It's a compilation of A LOT of videos, but it answers a lot of great questions like "Who created God?" It's definitely controversial and, at times, very challenging to not start to ask a million more questions. It probably won't answer all your questions, and certainly Kirk and Ray are not the ultimate deciders on the questions asked. However, they bring up good points and explain some concepts in a way that does seem to prove Christian principles.

May God Bless You All,
Emily Gray