When I was 11, our family stopped attending church. I'm not exactly sure why. Maybe it was too boring, too much work to wake up on Sunday mornings for a young family, or maybe just too irrelevant to our lives. But when I was 16, I was first introduced to a church much like Eagle Brook where the music was compelling and the messages actually spoke to real questions and interests that I had in my life. It was at this age that I really started my investigation of who God was.
I always thought there was a God, and if you cornered me, I probably would've said I was a Christian because I had Christian grandparents, my uncle was a pastor, and I lived in America. However, I had to discover for myself that God really was who he, and others, claimed that he was. How could I know for sure that God really cared about MY world, loves me, and died for me? I went on a quest to learn more about who God was with a desire to know "for sure" that he was a God I wanted to submit my life to.
During my investigation, I was exposed to some of the arguments for Christianity that Jason Strand gave this past weekend. Explanations from science, morality, and experience. I explored different verses that told me how, "God's invisible qualitieshis eternal power and divine naturehave been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse" (Romans 1:20). I learned how Jesus appeared before more than 500 people after his resurrection (I Corinthians 15:16), and I learned how one day I needed to personally respond to the striking evidence of Jesus's life, death, and resurrection (Romans 10:9).
As many questions as I had, I eventually realized that I could know for sure about who God was and of his love for me. Even though I had an incredibly basic understanding of who God was (a position I still resonate with) I felt I would allow faith to fill in the gaps.
What would I have to lose if I put my trust in Christ? If I pursue Christ, I receive the promise of heaven (John 3:16), direction for my life on earth (Jeremiah 29:11), and a purpose for my existence (Matthew 28:19). A relationship with Jesus would include a peace that passes understanding (Philippians 4:7), forgiveness (I John 1:9), and a new life (2 Corinthians 5:17).
Or, I could try to do life on my own; making up my own rules; battling fear, anxiety, guilt, and lack of purpose. When you put these two arguments together, the verdict seemed quite obvious to me.
It's been 30 years since I made that decision. Ask me if I've ever regretted a life of submission to the One who is "for sure." Ask me about the direction, purpose, peace, understanding, and forgiveness that has carried me through three decades of wins, losses, struggles, and successes. What if I would've let my questions about God go unexplored? I fear that, in doing that, I would have missed out greatly in my life, leadership, and parenting.
Perhaps one of the greatest verses that encouraged me, and might encourage you, is Psalm 34:8: "Taste and see that the Lord is good." If you are still battling a question that stands between you and the living God, do the research. Read the books. Talk to a Christian mentor. Keep digging. The stakes are too high to leave this one in the unresolved category. Eventually, my prayer is that you will "Taste and see" and allow God's loving direction to bring you into a renewed life that only he can offer.
