Nature's Pepsi Can

What's the right response to a God who so carefully constructed the banana (and the world) for my pleasure?

"In the beginning You laid the foundation of the earth, and the heavens are the work of Your hands." Psalm 102: 25

The second day of the new book I am reading - The God Questions, by Hal Seed & Dan Grider - still focuses on the question of if God is real and where did the world come from.  This section still followed along the path that all the intricacies and beauty of the world and everything in it cannot, and should not, be explained away by chance or a random collision of molecules.  To illustrate this point, the authors compare a Pepsi can to a banana and take a light-hearted approach toward pretending that the Pepsi can was produced through chance: "As time passed, aluminum crept out of the water and shaped itself into just these dimensions. Over time, this thing formed itself a one-time retractable lid, from which a crease appeared, a bit off-center, and out of it grew a pull-tab..." (p.8). The authors, however, then go on to describe a banana and how so much of the banana is designed just for convenient eating by us and other creatures that eat bananas - the way the outside indicates when it is ripe to eat, how it peels back so conveniently when we are ready to eat it and how well it sits in our hand for comfort, and so on. 
We just laughed over how absurd the thought was that a Pepsi can, including the lettering on the can, was formed by a random collision of molecules (basically chance), and then you see how much of the Pepsi can and its convenience is paralleled in the banana and it makes you sit back and take notice of how truly incredible a banana is, something many of us take so for granted on a regular basis.  The question at the end of this section and the top of this blog asks what the right response is and I believe that anything less of awe is selling it short.  Just think of the number of test products, focus groups, etc. that it took to perfect the Pepsi can while God had this all figured out before humans were even formed themselves.  And how patient of a God to know the perfect formula for all that time yet still have it take so long for humans to figure it out and not to get angry or frustrated at our stupidity or short-sightedness that we did not mimic his ingenious and perfect design sooner. 
Nothing less than awe would give God's designs even half of the respect that they deserve, because the amount of awe and wonder that He deserves for making the banana as he did... look in the mirror again, today.  Think about the DNA in your body and how precise every microscopic detail had to be in your creation and your individual design.  And even then, awe just doesn't seem to cut it.

BioLogos

When I look at the world, do I believe it is the result of intentional creation?

"The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands." Psalm 19:1 

I have started reading a book that claims to address all of the God questions that people typically have and focuses on about one question a day for 40 days.  The first major question asked: Is God Real? and spoke about how the creation of the universe proves God's existence.  Of course, there is a lot of debate between creationists and evolutionists on how the universe was actually created: The Big Bang Theory or God.  I know that growing up as a young person with a constant interest in science, I was constantly thrust up against this conundrum of which is right and having to try and reconcile the science with my faith - not always an easy task. So many people unfortunately view science as a threat to Christianity, or religion as a whole. Even in a recent Bible study we discussed how a "day" in Genesis does not necessarily equal a "day" as we know them to be today and this is supported even further by Pastor David Swain's sermon that I found on http://www.biologos.org/ as I decided to do more research into the topic based on this first question in The God Questions, by Hal Seed & Dan Grider.  In his sermon titled "Maker of Heaven and Earth", Pastor Swain tells us that Christians and scientists alike that get caught up in all the details of Genesis and asking how there were plants before there was rain to nourish them... they're asking all the wrong questions and, most importantly, missing the point! I agree. There is deeper meaning to be found in Genesis than the supposedly simple fact that it reads that the world was created in six days and God rested on the seventh. If the world was not actually created in 144 hours, this should not bring the entire religion of Christianity crashing down into rubble... the Christian faith is based on the glory of God and the sacrifice of His son, Jesus Christ, not on the Genesis timeline.  Because is it any easier to believe that something out in a universe that just spontaneously existed in the first place exploded and led to millenia of evolution on its own that evolved into something so complex - again, on its own - that every single human baby born has a different genetic code and a unique personality and so on.  If you are a parent, look at your children, and anyone can just look at themselves, and take a moment to take yourself in... the complexity, the genius, the beauty, the masterpiece... I can honestly say that I cannot believe that comes to be through pure chance and coincidence.  The book I'm reading quotes Voltaire in saying that, "I shall always be convinced that a watch proves a watch-maker," and while that is taking the overall belief to the most mundane example possible, it proves the point well.  The universe itself points to the existence of a Creator God, and while I will constantly - hopefully for the rest of my life - continue to study and explore my faith, there is very little left that I feel the need to "reconcile" because being a Christian has never been based on proof, but on faith, which is in itself the proof of God's love for us. And if nothing else, through my studies I have found yet another great resource in http://www.biologos.org/ and will continue to explore all the forum can share with me.

Sunday Questions for Every Day

On almost a daily basis I am reminded of my lifestyle choices.  No, I'm not talking about just waking up each morning, turning over and saying, "Yep, there's another girl sleeping next to me," but more specifically, my father.  I have been raised in the church my entire life and I do not hesitate to call myself a Christian, and I do so based on my daily struggle to align my thoughts and my heart with that of God's word.  Many people will read that sentence though and wait barely a millisecond to point out that my lifestyle choice is the first thing that has to go if I ever want to be "right" with God.  You'd like my dad; he agrees, I don't. To start off, I'd like to insert this excerpt I found today that seemed to really hit home with this particular issue I regularly face...

 An engineering professor is treating her husband, a loan officer, to dinner for finally giving in to her pleas to shave off the scraggly beard he grew on vacation.  His favorite restaurant is a casual place where they both feel comfortable in slacks and cotton/polyester-blend golf shirts.  But, as always, she wears the gold and pearl pendant he gave her the day her divorce decree was final.  They're laughing over their menus because they know he always ends up diving into a giant plate of ribs but she won't be talked into anything more fattening than shrimp.
      Quiz:  How many biblical prohibitions are they violating?  Well, wives are supposed to be 'submissive' to their husbands (I Peter 3:1).  And all women are forbidden to teach men (I Timothy 2:12), wear gold or pearls (I Timothy 2:9) or dress in clothing that 'pertains to a man' (Deuteronomy 22:5).  Shellfish and pork are definitely out (Leviticus 11:7, 10) as are usury (Deuteronomy 23:19), shaving (Leviticus 19:27) and clothes of more than one fabric (Leviticus 19:19).  And since the Bible rarely recognizes divorce, they're committing adultery, which carries the rather harsh penalty of death by stoning (Deuteronomy 22:22).
      So why are they having such a good time?  Probably because they wouldn't think of worrying about rules that seem absurd, anachronistic or - at best - unrealistic.  Yet this same modern-day couple could easily be among the millions of Americans who never hesitate to lean on the Bible to justify their own anti-gay attitudes.  ~Deb Price, And Say Hi To Joyce

How many times have you heard people reference some of those exact instances, like eating pork, and say that it is outdated now and thereby doesn't apply to their morning sausages? Those same people, however, have no issues saying that the statements found against homosexuality in the Bible are just as relevant today as they were when they were first written, because every word of the Bible should be taken at face value as the very word of God, same today as when they were writing on parchment and earlier.  Do not take this as me saying that the Bible is not the word of God, because it is, and I read it as such... but what I am saying is that those exact people who say that we cannot take the words of the Bible and make them fit our lifestyles because it is convenient, do that themselves on a daily basis.

People, for instance, my father, do not hesitate to "throw the Good Book" at me when they get the chance, talking out against my lifestyle choice, but those that do should take a moment to reflect on the Good Book before they do and remember Matthew 22:37-40:

Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”

I am just another human being, just another neighbor... so is my girlfriend. And those of you that know me, know that I am not usually very controversial on issues such as these, even when they apply to me, but I figure that I will try and use this blog to get some of these things off my chest, but still try and do so in a way that doesn't get me too riled, or anyone else.  This is just me stating my opinions out there for you to read, and you can choose to do so or not... and whatever choice you make, I will still love you, and hope you do the same for me. ;)