Member
My late father was a man of strong opinions. Hard working, the son of strict Russian immigrants, he had a guileless ability to enjoy the simple fact that the sun rises every day. Having seen his parents tough out the McCarthy era, where Russians in the U.S. were branded as communists, my dad hated prejudice and would speak in a voice that could be heard in the next county, mano a mano, to call someone's shots if they expressed bigotry. Nonetheless he maintained, as though it were a religion, that there is "no such thing as God."
My family is an every-man-for-himself type. Originally, I came to California to visit my Dad, and decided to stay because I was not looking forward to returning to shoveling snow for the rest of the winter. Once I found my own place to stay, we got together once in a while, but as far as could be seen, he was more interested in his circle of friends. Eventually he moved into a pretty cool apartment complex, where poolside in the summer was the place to be for comraderie and friendly debate. Occasionally, I would join him and his cronies for conversation.
One day, my dad and several friends; a minister, a teacher, a salesman, and perhaps others were having a conversation (debate) about the existence of God. I had already begun to believe in an invisible "almighty" God, probably self-described as a great omniscient intellect, but from what I knew of Christianity, it made the least sense of any religion. My dad was true to lifelong form, debating against the the reality of God. At some point I threw in my two cents, "I believe God is real, but it is not possible that Mary could be a virgin and Jesus be born without a human father." My dad immediately answered, "I have no problem with that. If God existed, He could do that." He said it in a matter of fact, guileless tone of voice, as though talking about a neighbor one says hello to every day. "Huh!?" I thought, "Is this guy kidding - this hardcore atheist?" At that moment I realized that his concept of God was probably far more accurate than mine. He did not believe in a God, yet defined God as without limits. I believed in a God that was limited by my human understanding. A couple of years later, though that revelation was not consciously on my mind, I read the New Testament and became a Christian. Without having had my concept challenged by my late father's comment, it is doubtful my logic would have given way for me to give my life to the Lord Jesus.
To Christ
My family is an every-man-for-himself type. Originally, I came to California to visit my Dad, and decided to stay because I was not looking forward to returning to shoveling snow for the rest of the winter. Once I found my own place to stay, we got together once in a while, but as far as could be seen, he was more interested in his circle of friends. Eventually he moved into a pretty cool apartment complex, where poolside in the summer was the place to be for comraderie and friendly debate. Occasionally, I would join him and his cronies for conversation.
One day, my dad and several friends; a minister, a teacher, a salesman, and perhaps others were having a conversation (debate) about the existence of God. I had already begun to believe in an invisible "almighty" God, probably self-described as a great omniscient intellect, but from what I knew of Christianity, it made the least sense of any religion. My dad was true to lifelong form, debating against the the reality of God. At some point I threw in my two cents, "I believe God is real, but it is not possible that Mary could be a virgin and Jesus be born without a human father." My dad immediately answered, "I have no problem with that. If God existed, He could do that." He said it in a matter of fact, guileless tone of voice, as though talking about a neighbor one says hello to every day. "Huh!?" I thought, "Is this guy kidding - this hardcore atheist?" At that moment I realized that his concept of God was probably far more accurate than mine. He did not believe in a God, yet defined God as without limits. I believed in a God that was limited by my human understanding. A couple of years later, though that revelation was not consciously on my mind, I read the New Testament and became a Christian. Without having had my concept challenged by my late father's comment, it is doubtful my logic would have given way for me to give my life to the Lord Jesus.
To Christ
