A Confession... and Hope for a Starving Generation

I have been thinking lately about what most people in the younger generations desire, and where they feel unsatisfied. I think more than anything we have become skeptical of the traditions of our parents because we have seen how they have failed them. We think of faith as something hollow and church as a club that people belong to so they can feel better about themselves. We think of religious people as judgmental and uncaring. We want love and relationship, and because we have not seen it in religion, we have looked for it in friends and lovers and have become just as disillusioned...

I think I have always been the kind of person who has been interested in facts, however divorced they are from feeling. Naturally, when I came to Christianity, I did so because of evidence, and much of my Christian life has been spent studying doctrines and learning facts about who God is and what the Bible says. This kind of study is very helpful when it comes to finding out about God, but I have often failed in applying what I have learned to the God who is personally, whom I know and love and who loves me. I have struggled to know God in relationship in the way that He desires me to, and in a way that gives my life real fulfillment.

But whenever I do stop to talk to my God and my Friend, I do find peace. I find a relationship with a Father who really does love me unconditionally and never disappoints me (unlike our earthly fathers). I find a God who IS love and who is so patient with my short-comings, though He always pushes me to do better, with His help. When I open up to Him and put Him in the center of my life where He belongs, He gives me the kind of relationship that everyone in my generation is craving but hasn't found. Yes, religion has failed us. But the true God who created us and gives the world meaning has not failed us. And even though we have so many times failed Him in our lives, He is ready to offer us forgiveness and restoration, and has done so in His Messiah, Jesus. He has restored us to a right place by taking the burden of sin onto Himself, and as a consequence we can now know Him and enjoy Him forever. This is the good news of the Gospel message, and in a love-starved generation that has become frustrated with tradition and "going through the motions" of religion, it is the best news anyone could offer.

Questions for the skeptic:

Do you think my discussion of an emotional relationship with God shows that my belief in God is for psychological reasons alone? If so, how do you explain the fact that I struggle with not trusting in God in a relational sense, but depend mostly on my intellectual assent to what I see as the truth of God?

Does life have meaning? If so, is it true meaning or do we make it up ourselves? If life does have meaning in the real sense, what is that meaning? Does our idolizing cars, money, sex, or people set us up for disaster? Since we tend to lift people or things up as gods, doesn't this show our inherent need for transcendental meaning and God? If we have a real thirst for God and meaning, does this suggest that meaning and God truly exist? If not, what does this desire point to?

Does the fact that so many Christians have turned worship into a social club and faith into a list of do's and dont's suggest that Christianity is also empty, or could it be that Christianity is full of beauty and truth but we have sold it short by institutionalizing it (for a practical example of this in politics, think of how revolutionaries with high ideals succeed in establishing their government just to see their leaders sell the movement's ideals short)?

Hello!

My name's Cody. I'm a theology student. I spent my teenage years as an atheist, and near the end of high school became convinced in the existence of God. Sometime after that I became a Christian. I started this blog for a few reasons:

1. I enjoy debate and conversation on deeper, more important matters. I have always been miserable at small talk and terrific at alienating people who don't like talking about politics, religion, and what some call "personal matters," which are in fact intensely far-reaching, impacting much more than just the individual. However, I am also polite, friendly, and non-combative. I may openly disagree with you, but I will do my best to treat you with respect and hope you will do the same to me. No name-calling, please.

2. I think that Christians in the west haven't done a good job of explaining Christianity to non-Christians, nor have they done a good job of reflecting the character of Christ. As a result, Christianity looks silly, and Christians judgmental idiots, to those who are outside. I want to correct some of these misperceptions and show non-Christians the reasonableness of our faith. While I can't argue with the fact that many Christians are in fact judgmental idiots, I can correct the perception that they somehow reflect Christ in this regard, and show that Christians should be held to a higher standard. If you choose to disagree with my views anyway, that's totally fine. But if I have corrected some stereotypes, I will still have felt that I have accomplished one of my major goals.

3. Being that Christianity is a religion which supports sharing its tenets and encouraging people to embrace them, I am hoping to lead people to Christ. I want to be honest about this right up front because I don't want to be deceptive. However, it is not my goal to be pushy. You are free to look at my arguments and make up your mind. You are also free to e-mail me if you have any questions. My e-mail address is at yahoo.com, and my username is revd_icu (I am wording it this way so bots won't steal my e-mail and spam me).

I will be giving evidences for what Christians believe, clarifying confusing doctrines, and trying to better reflect the personhood and love of Jesus Christ. Most of what I write will be targeted toward skeptics, though I may occasionally compare Christianity to other world religions for the purpose of highlighting differences and showcasing what I feel is the superiority of the Christian religion. I will TRY to use easy-to-understand language, even when talking about somewhat technical matters, so that it will be easy for readers to follow me.

I also have another blog, http://codysblackbox.blogspot.com, which is targeted toward Christians and skeptics alike, though mainly toward Christians. I started this new blog to target skeptics specifically. You may find some over-lap of posts on both blogs.