Wondering About God?

If so, you are in the majority. Polls show that most of us believe in God and even pray, but we all have questions. We may simply wonder if faith is rational. Even if it is, how can we know who God is? Does He care that I am wondering about Him?

Some describe it as a hunger or thirsting for more. We may have gone down the "if only" road: if only I had more money, a nicer car, or a bigger house. Or, if only I could experience this or that, that would bring purpose to my life. But then, having climbed every mountain, so to speak, we look back and say, "Is this all there is?" Isn't there a purpose to life, something that will give me meaning? And we wonder if God could give us purpose.

Others have been brought to the end of their rope by the stresses of life. It may be marital or family responsibilities, illness, the loss of a loved one, or something else outside of our control. We try to keep a stiff upper lip and a good outward appearance. But on the inside we know know that, as strong as we may try to be, the reality is that we feel helpless facing this alone. We long for strength beyond ourselves to help us cope, and we wonder if God can be that strength.

Still others realize that the stresses in their life are their own doing. Whatever it might be, we can look back and see that we are living with the consequences of our own choices. And we wonder if God can love someone who has been down the path we have chosen.

These, and others are important questions. They are the kind of questions that the Bible describes as spiritual seeking. As you seek, consider the following: We believe that you matter to God and that the answers to your questions are within reach. Also, we invite you to see how God has changed lives at REFC.

You Matter To God!

Imagine a potter's clay pot saying, "I am my own pot. I exist because I do." Sounds silly doesn't it? And yet, we do the same thing when we live life independent of the one who made us. The potter takes a strong interest in his or her pottery, designing it for a purpose and shaping it for that same purpose. In the same way, and far more significantly, God takes a strong interest in you, His work.

You matter to Him because He designed and made you. We know this because of the historical record of the Bible, God's communication to man. The first book of the Bible, Genesis, says, "God created man in His own image, male and female He created them."

If I matter to Him, why does He seem so distant?

We all assert our independence from God, and the Bible makes it clear that if God seems far away it is because we have separated ourselves from Him. One of many biblical words for this is sin. For example, the writer of Ecclesiastes wrote, "there is not a righteous man on earth who continually does good and who never sins." Other biblical writings say that God seems distant because our sin nature makes us "strangers" and "aliens" in our relationship with God.

But the Bible also tells us that God has reached out to us through His Son, Jesus, so we can be forgiven and know Him as an intimate friend. In John chapter 14, verse 6 the Bible tells us that Jesus once said, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me."

You matter to God and though He may seem far away, God graciously sent His Son Jesus so you could have a way to know Him. Because of His Son Jesus, God is within reach.

Can I rely on the Bible?

In your spiritual seeking you may have questions about the reliability of the Bible. This is an important question because the Bible claims to be God's words. The apostle Peter wrote that, "no prophecy of Scripture is a matter of one's own interpretation, for no prophecy was ever made by an act of human will, but men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God."

Many who have objectively tested the claims of the Bible have become convinced of its reliability. At REFC, we can provide you with several resources to help you study and test the claims of the Bible. If this is a question you have, we encourage you to take this step with an open mind to the evidence that is available. We believe that you matter so much to God that He inspired the authors of the Bible to communicate with you.

I go to church regularly, doesn't that make me a Christian?

It may help to make a distinction between having a relationship with God and practicing the religious aspects of Christianity. There is also a difference between an intellectual knowledge of Christ and having a relationship with God. Many of us seek God through a process of inquiry, and that may include church attendance. But at some point in our spiritual seeking, we come to a decision point of faith in Christ as our only way to have a relationship with God. Faith is personalizing the message of Christ. It is believing that Christ died for our individual sins.

The outcome of our faith is sometimes referred to as spiritual birth. Just as physical growth follows physical birth, spiritual growth then follows spiritual birth. Church attendance is an important part of the process of spiritual growth. But spiritual growth follows a decision point of a personal faith and trust in Christ as God's means of forgiveness. It is this faith decision that makes us a Christian.

What do I need to do to have a relationship with God?

We can start a relationship with God by relying on Jesus' death for our independent sin nature. The Bible says that it is through our faith in His death, and rising from the dead, that it is possible for us to come back into relationship with God. We express our trust in His death through a prayer similar to this "God, I acknowledge my sins and your Son's death for me on the cross. I ask You to forgive me and show me how to live a life pleasing to You."

When we pray that kind of prayer, we don't have to wonder if He hears us. We matter to God and He is eager for us to accept the free gift of His Son. When we do, we can be sure that we have a relationship with God. Jesus said, "he who hears My word, and believes in Him who sent Me, has eternal life, and does not come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life."

If you have further questions about this, please contact us at (920)326-3821 or refc83@centurytel.net. We would appreciate the opportunity to communicate with you and help you in your spiritual journey. We believe there is nothing more important than that you pursue answers to your spiritual questions. Here are some other suggestions for you as you are seeking:

• Ask God to reveal Himself to you.
• Read the Bible. Start with a New Testament book like the gospel of John or Romans.
• Talk with professing Christians. Ask them questions about what they believe and why.
• Write down what your spiritual questions are and present them to a knowledgeable Christian.
• Act on your conclusions.