Book Rant! The Case for Faith

First, thanks again to Shannon & Brad for buying this book for me.

This reading is my last installment of "The Case for . . ." series. Case for Faith is my second favorite of the three with Case for Christ being #1 (it should be mandatory reading) and Case for Creator being #3 (a little knowledge and/or interest in physics will help).

If you're not familiar with Lee Strobel here he is in a nutshell: athiest investigative journalist trys to disprove God, Jesus and Christianity but, in the process, becomes a Christian himself - pretty cool!

Each book outlines his research on the topics of Christ, Creation and Faith.

In Case for Faith, Strobel sets out to answer 8 simple* objections:

1. Since evil and suffering exist, a loving God cannot.

2. Since miracles contradict science, they cannot be true.

3. Evolution explains life, so God isn't needed.

4. God isn't worthy of worship if He kills innocent children.

5. It's offensive to claim Jesus is the only way to God.

6. A loving God would never tourture people in Hell.

7. Church history is littered with oppression and violence.

8. I still have doubts, so I can't be a Christian.

Ever have one of these pop into your mind?

If so, it's OK. Strobel reminds us that we can only have faith if it is in the midst of doubt. If there is nothing to doubt then there's no need to have faith. Remember the guy in Mark 9:24 who told Jesus, "I believe but help my unbelief"?

Here are some quotes:

Pg. 101 - On the universe being created by random chance: "Sir Frederick Hoyle put it colorfully when he said that [The Big Bang Theory] is about as likely as a tornado whirling through a junkyard and accidentally assembling a fully functioning Boeing 747."

Pg. 119 - On God's Old Testament orders to kill men, women and children: "People assume that what's wrong for us is wrong for God. However, it's wrong for me to take your life because I didn't make it and I don't own it . . . God is sovereign over all life and he has the right to take it if he wishes."

Pg. 156 - "Jesus didn't come into this world to make bad people good - he came into this world to make dead people live."

Pg. 192 - The truth about hell: "Remember that hell will forever be a monument to human dignity and the value of human choice. It is a quarantine where God says two important things: 'I respect freedom of choice enough to where I won't coerce people, and I value my image-bearers so much that I will not annihilate them."

Pg. 236 - "When you scratch below the surface, there's either a will to believe or there's a will not to believe. Faith is a choice."

Get it. Read it. Live it.

*sarcasm

Tagged . . . First & Last

My wife tagged me. So here it goes:

First memory: My mom used to be an interior decorator and would take me along on her "house calls." One house had a bear skin rug on the floor . . . with bear head (and teeth) still attached! It's so unfortunate that one of my earliest memories as a 4-year old is of me being deathly afraid of a rug.

Side note: This memory has transitioned into an adulthood post traumatic disorder as a general fear of all large teeth-bearing animals.

First real kiss: JoAnn - 6th Grade. She had to ask me twice before I could muster up the courage. I remember thinking afterwards, "Man, I hope she doesn't ask me to do that again."

First concert: Soul Lift at Six Flags - Jr. High. Another sad example of my overly sheltered and repressed childhood.

First love: Blue Bell & Magic Shell. No, seriously!

First crush: Lisa - 5th Grade. We even "went" together for a while until she broke up with me just after Valentine's Day - ouch!

First thing you think in the morning: Please, Tate - just 10 more minutes!

First book you remember loving: Escape From Warsaw by Ian Serrailler - 6th Grade. This book planted the seeds to my lifelong fascination with World War II. It's a true story about 3 kids who escape German occupation in Poland to reunite with their family in Switzerland.

First pet: Bonkers - An appropriately named golden retriever mix that could have benefited from a daily dose of Ritalin.

First question you'll ask in Heaven: "Can we watch the history of the world on TiVo?"

First thing you think of when you hear the word 'vacation':

(As the trailer says, "When you think vacation, think National Lampoon's Vacation")

First best friend: Dirk - 2nd Grade. He had all the cool Transformers.

Last time you dressed up: Excluding my suit and tie for work . . . I can't remember.

Last thing you ate: Oven Baked Potato Wedges with Olive Oil, Rosemary and Garlic! Mmmmm! They make the house smell yummy!

Last CD you bought: Thanks to iTunes I haven't bought a CD in quite a while - I only buy singles now. But the last full CD I bought off of iTunes was the soundtrack to Master & Commander: The Far Side of the World. Great movie. Even better soundtrack.

Last (good) book you read: I'll insert the word "good" and go with Lee Strobel's Case for Faith

Last time you cried: When I held Tate for the first time.

Last time you told someone you loved them: A few minutes ago when Kelly and Tate left to run errands.

Last really funny thing you did: I'll change this to the last funny thing my dad did: For Father's Day last weekend we went to my parents' and grilled hamburgers. After a few bites of his burger my dad said, "Is there something wrong with this cheese?" That's when he realized that he was trying to eat his cheeseburger with the plastic wrapper still on the cheese!

Last thing you watched on TV: Comedy Central's The Colbert Report. Kinda sad how this is how I get all my news now!

Last Halloween costume: I can't remember my last costume so I'll tell you about my favorite costume. Batman - Age 4'ish. My mom made it herself - including the cape and cowl! But don't think that just because it was homemade it was some dorky looking costume. My Mom is pretty impressive with a sewing machine. In fact, some people thought I was the real Batman!

Last concert attended: Celine Dion in Vegas . . . but only to prove my everlasting love and devotion to my wife!

I tag Tara because I can only imagine what her responses will be; Russ because he needs a break from his dissertation work; and Keri because despite recently learning 100 random things about her the blogosphere still wants more!