Earlier this week I uploaded a new video to my “ Just Thinking ” YouTube page and on day two, it went from about a hundred views to over a thousand. At the time of this writing there have been over 1,600 views. Now, I haven’t had any other videos take off like this one did, even my testimony took over a month to reach a thousand views. I also began to notice more comments and shares on my “Just Thinking” Facebook page and a couple on YouTube. Several of the comments have been quite interesting, and they all revolve around the word – GOD.
The video I uploaded getting all this attention at the moment is entitled, “ Why Didn’t God Stop the Abuse? ” Some of the comments came with assumptions based on the title rather than watching the video. Some individuals thought the video was about domestic abuse, but it was actually a response to a poster who had watched the question and answer segment with Dr. Milanak and me. This poster was challenging the existence of God and in their opinion, there was no grace or mercy to be observed in my story. Here is David’s statement in full, “If this is an example of god’s grace and healing, it means nothing, or it (god), wouldn’t have allowed the injury in the first place. ” I’m pretty sure David is an atheist. Others like him who I have interacted with in the past almost always address God as “it,” while also refusing to capitalize the word God.
The two posters on YouTube had similar statements to the one David left on Facebook, yet they went farther in their condemnation. These men questioned my intellect and ability to think critically, which is often an “argument” atheist make against Christians and other religious minded individuals. The truth is, the stance atheist often take against Christians isn’t an argument at all, but an attack rooted in emotion. They hurl disparagements toward followers of Christ such as being anti-intellectuals with the hope of quieting others. These two boiled my answer to the abuse question down to simply being stupid and weak for believing in God.
Let’s ask ourselves a few questions.
“Why do atheist get so upset when someone trust in a loving God they say doesn’t exist?”
“So, what if someone’s belief in God is a crutch? ( I’m not saying that belief is a crutch ) If said belief helps a person to cope with the daily struggles of life, then why would any open minded and tolerant person care what another believes?”
I have a theory about why atheists care what Christians believe. They care because when confronted with the truth their hearts and minds fall under conviction. They struggle for answers concerning pain and evil, but without God there isn’t a viable answer that can satisfy their deepest longings. They know that when they sit at the side of a dying loved one, they have nothing to offer but sorrow, and then they’re confronted with their own mortality, that one day they too will face the end of life with no hope.
In years past my skin wasn’t as thick as it is now, and such responses from individuals troubled me because I would wonder if I had made some sort of mistake making a bad situation worse. Today, I’m still troubled but for a far different reason. I don’t think producing such works and writings to be questioned or challenged by others is a mistake, actually it’s quite the opposite. I think it’s a mistake NOT to put out videos and blogs like the one getting attention now. It’s a mistake NOT to take every opportunity using the tools at hand to share the Gospel of Christ, even if it offends the unbeliever. Remember these words from the Apostle Paul?
1 Corinthians 1:18-19 (ESV) For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For it is written, “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and the discernment of the discerning I will thwart.”
Romans 10:14-15 (ESV) How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!”
Christian, we have a responsibility to share the Gospel through each and every avenue presented to us, for in doing so it will make an eternal difference for some. While Christ-Centered Solutions focuses primarily on the needs of those in the Church, there are also many opportunities to share with those who are outside as well. My “ Just Thinking ” blog/vlog are an extension of CCS and I need your continued help to grow this ministry for the glory of Christ. Here’s how you can be a vital part of this ministry.
Please follow these links to:
Give a one-time gift online or to become a monthly partner: Christ-Centered Solutions.org
Purchase: “ Marriage and the Family from a Biblical Worldview ”
Watch: “ Why Didn’t God Stop the Abuse ”
And please don’t forget to subscribe to “ Just Thinking ” on YouTube by clicking the subscribe button in the bottom left corner of the video
May God keep and bless you!
The video I uploaded getting all this attention at the moment is entitled, “ Why Didn’t God Stop the Abuse? ” Some of the comments came with assumptions based on the title rather than watching the video. Some individuals thought the video was about domestic abuse, but it was actually a response to a poster who had watched the question and answer segment with Dr. Milanak and me. This poster was challenging the existence of God and in their opinion, there was no grace or mercy to be observed in my story. Here is David’s statement in full, “If this is an example of god’s grace and healing, it means nothing, or it (god), wouldn’t have allowed the injury in the first place. ” I’m pretty sure David is an atheist. Others like him who I have interacted with in the past almost always address God as “it,” while also refusing to capitalize the word God.
The two posters on YouTube had similar statements to the one David left on Facebook, yet they went farther in their condemnation. These men questioned my intellect and ability to think critically, which is often an “argument” atheist make against Christians and other religious minded individuals. The truth is, the stance atheist often take against Christians isn’t an argument at all, but an attack rooted in emotion. They hurl disparagements toward followers of Christ such as being anti-intellectuals with the hope of quieting others. These two boiled my answer to the abuse question down to simply being stupid and weak for believing in God.
Let’s ask ourselves a few questions.
“Why do atheist get so upset when someone trust in a loving God they say doesn’t exist?”
“So, what if someone’s belief in God is a crutch? ( I’m not saying that belief is a crutch ) If said belief helps a person to cope with the daily struggles of life, then why would any open minded and tolerant person care what another believes?”
I have a theory about why atheists care what Christians believe. They care because when confronted with the truth their hearts and minds fall under conviction. They struggle for answers concerning pain and evil, but without God there isn’t a viable answer that can satisfy their deepest longings. They know that when they sit at the side of a dying loved one, they have nothing to offer but sorrow, and then they’re confronted with their own mortality, that one day they too will face the end of life with no hope.
In years past my skin wasn’t as thick as it is now, and such responses from individuals troubled me because I would wonder if I had made some sort of mistake making a bad situation worse. Today, I’m still troubled but for a far different reason. I don’t think producing such works and writings to be questioned or challenged by others is a mistake, actually it’s quite the opposite. I think it’s a mistake NOT to put out videos and blogs like the one getting attention now. It’s a mistake NOT to take every opportunity using the tools at hand to share the Gospel of Christ, even if it offends the unbeliever. Remember these words from the Apostle Paul?
1 Corinthians 1:18-19 (ESV) For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For it is written, “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and the discernment of the discerning I will thwart.”
Romans 10:14-15 (ESV) How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!”
Christian, we have a responsibility to share the Gospel through each and every avenue presented to us, for in doing so it will make an eternal difference for some. While Christ-Centered Solutions focuses primarily on the needs of those in the Church, there are also many opportunities to share with those who are outside as well. My “ Just Thinking ” blog/vlog are an extension of CCS and I need your continued help to grow this ministry for the glory of Christ. Here’s how you can be a vital part of this ministry.
- Follow the video links in this newsletter and Subscribe to my “Just Thinking” YouTube page. The more people who subscribe to the “Just Thinking” page encourages YouTube to share the videos with a broader audience, and therefore the more the Gospel is shared, and more Christians are introduced to the ministry of CCS.
- Pray for the ministry itself, which includes our Board of Directors, Teresa and me.
- Become a monthly partner of CCS - A donation of just $10 a month will go to help cover the cost of travel, websites, newsletters, and other materials to put into the hands of hurting brothers and sisters, as well as producing works to stir the hearts and minds of unbelievers. A donation of $25, $50, or $75 a month goes to help cover the cost of other Christians who are seeking help but can’t afford the help they need. I do a lot of premarital and marital counseling for little or no cost. I use a variety of tools in these sessions including marriage workbooks, online tutorials, and tests. So, when couples and individuals can’t cover the costs associated with Biblical counseling CCS does.
- Become a Barnabas Partner. The Barnabas Partnership is a $1,200 annual gift (can be given in $100 a month installments) which allows me to serve as a pastor, coach, and counselor to other pastors. Designating funds to this area of ministry provides funds for the pastoral care, coaching, and encouragement of pastors and their spouses primarily in smaller churches. Most of these pastors are isolated and rarely have a confidant to turn to in times of need, or when questions arise where they may feel vulnerable. These pastors normally are lower wage earners in full-time pastorates or bivocational churches and struggling to stay afloat. The Barnabas Partnership makes sure no pastor or spouse will ever receive a charge for care.
- If you can’t become a monthly partner, please consider giving a one-time gift of any amount. You can also visit the Amazon.com link and purchase the book, “Marriage and the Family from a Biblical Worldview. This is my first book and all funds go to the ministry of Christ-Centered Solutions.
Please follow these links to:
Give a one-time gift online or to become a monthly partner: Christ-Centered Solutions.org
Purchase: “ Marriage and the Family from a Biblical Worldview ”
Watch: “ Why Didn’t God Stop the Abuse ”
And please don’t forget to subscribe to “ Just Thinking ” on YouTube by clicking the subscribe button in the bottom left corner of the video
May God keep and bless you!
