'Out of the ordinary and into the extraordinary'.Very soon, most likely during the month of August, I'm going to embark on an adventure, and I invite you join me, in which I will dive head-first into some of the common deeper theological and scientific questions regarding Christianity. Oftentimes our world puts science and faith in contrast with each other, but the gist of all of these posts will be to argue that the two aspects of life can indeed coincide and live in harmony with one another. Especially in the collegiate atmosphere, multitudes of scholars and students often look at the world around us and conclude that there is no God or that faith is futile because of one reason or another. Having struggled with many of these thoughts and questions myself during my freshman year of college, I find a deep desire in my soul to share parts of my experiences and discoveries that came from that season of my life. Many of my questions have been answered, while others have not quite been in full. All across the board, however, one element has remained true: the beauty of Christ. His love is evident to me in every circumstance. Whether we are studying the structure of a sunflower, the concept of evolution, or the question of the Bible's credibility, I believe we will find God at the exact center of it all.
My purpose in posting this series is not to sway or convince any person one way or another to believe anything-especially regarding Jesus Christ, and I say this because of the same reason this post was published, and that is because the love of Jesus is not meant to be convinced through words. Rather, His love is meant to be experienced in life. My hope is that these words come to eyes and hearts that need to see them, whether to expand one's thinking, answer one's questions, or to make one's faith stronger. These types of questions regarding the metaphysical (spiritual) realm coexisting with the physical (scientific) are ones I find many college students struggle with, and, again, they are ones I most definitely encountered during my first year of school, and I emphasize this last sentence because I want any readers out there to know that if you are struggling with questions such as these, you are not alone. Here is another truth for you: there is nothing to fear. Having questions such as these, or even being challenged in a classroom setting or academic environment, can often lead to fearful doubt or overwhelming confusion, and I want to encourage strength in the midst of the chaos, for instead of seeing a contrast in the Christian faith and today's worldly discoveries I have found it is completely possible to find a beauty found no where else in bringing the two aspects of life together. I encourage you to find God within the structure of DNA. Look for His handiwork in the elements of physics. Search for His attributes within every part of life, because He is there. Have assurance in His sovereignty, because it is in this that a peace with not knowing the answer to every question comes. I've found that even if we cannot find the answer to a question right away, oftentimes we can rest in simply trusting God to reveal to us what we need to know rather than what we want to know, and sometimes we are blessed with experiencing both of these. Gain a bit of wisdom from my favorite quote today:
'I beg you...to have patience with everything unresolved in your heart and try to love the questions themselves as if they were locked rooms or books written in a very foreign language. Don't search for the answers, which could not be given to you now, because you would not be able to live them. And the point is, to live everything. Live the questions now. Perhaps then, someday far in the future, you will gradually, without even noticing it, live your way into the answer'.
-Rainer Maria RilkeSo, to summarize, this series beginning in the near future will cover what I consider to be deep theological and scientific questions. On a milk and meat spectrum, I would label them very much as meat, so if you are new to the Christian faith, I recommend starting elsewhere. Milk would be perhaps studying the gospels in the Bible (the books Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John). You can also read through my series 'The Healthy Life' for a general overview of some principles I believe God calls believers to when we have a relationship with Him. More importantly though is the actual experience. Before you dive head-on into theology or any other blog, book, or sermon, I encourage you to get on your knees and ask God to reveal Himself to you. Try out a community that truly puts God first so that you can see His love within a unified body. Let Him love you today. He wants to hold your heart.
One last point: I ask for respect from everyone. If you disagree, please share, but do not do so in manner that will offend or put down anyone else. Only love is spoken here.
Our lives were made to collide with Majesty. Christy Nockels has a song out titled, 'Into the Glorious', and it captures my heart for this series wholly. Living in faith is what we are made for, and one way for us to do so is to find God within the tiniest parts of life-all the way down to the atom-as well as finding Him on the top of a mountain summit where His glory is overwhelming. His beauty is all around, and I'm excited to discover it with you.
