Honestly Thinking

Honestly thinking (& rethinking) about God, the universe, and everything in between

Category: Rethinking God (Page 2 of 2)

True Story: The Case of the Missing Groom

April 17, 2016 / / 6 Comments

Waiting_Bride_at_the_New_Orleans_Museum_of_Art

Everyone has one of those stories: the kind of strange, true-life events you tell at a party that people find hard to believe.  This is mine.

Though I confess some of the specific details over the years have escaped me, I assure you the story itself is real.

Back in the 90’s I worked as a freelance cameraman for a company that videotaped weddings.  One weekend my fellow freelancer David and I set out for what we thought would be a typical day of: capture the bride and groom individually getting ready, front and back camera setup for the ceremony, tape the photography session without getting in the still photographers’ way (or on their nerves because you’re taking away from their business), capture the bride and groom entering the reception, first dance, cutting the cake, interviews with sometimes obnoxiously drunk people congratulating the bride and groom, and get the final moments of people pelting them with rice or bird seed and watching them drive off.

In and out…boom…we’re done.  I hate to admit it, but what was often a very special day for some was pretty formulaic for us.

But this day was different. Continue reading

Rethinking God’s Wrath

April 15, 2016 / / 0 Comments

The following is a direct excerpt from Rethinking God, Chapter 3: Bigger

Rethinking God’s Wrath

Often God is thought of as a blood-thirsty dictator, perpetually pissed off at mankind, continually seeking opportunities for punishment and revenge.  But is that really the God who exists?  By understanding God and existence to be one and the same, it gives us opportunity to re-evaluate exactly what we mean when we refer to God’s wrath. Continue reading

Must Our President Be Christian? What Even Evangelicals Get Wrong About Separation of Church and State

March 6, 2016 / / 16 Comments

Bible and flag

“Separation of church and state.”  Few phrases have caused such division and controversy.  From the famous Scopes Monkey Trial to battles over the Ten Commandments on public display to stories of high school coaches praying with their teams, there is no shortage of opinions.

Recently, the phrase has even become part of the dialogue in Republican presidential primaries.  After, I questioned the faith claims and behaviors of one of the leading candidates, several objectors decried, “What about separation of church and state?”

Surprisingly, evangelical Christian supporters of the candidate – ones who in the past have traditionally defended this is a “Christian nation” – have begun using a slight variation on the phrase when they proclaim that we are electing “a commander-in-chief, not a pastor-in-chief.”

But all of this is symptomatic that even evangelicals have become victims of a great misunderstanding about God. Continue reading

Yes, Virginia, There is a Supreme Dictator of the Universe … and You’re Okay With It

February 28, 2016 / / 0 Comments

I hate to break it to you but it’s true.  Though, thou may protest much, and though the idea of it may defy every notion of freedom you believe in, there is, in fact, a supreme dictator and that dictator has complete control of your life. 

What’s more is that even though we dislike the idea of our individual freedoms being taken, we protest very little of the actual rules that this dictator imposes on us and, in truth, often welcome them.

And I’ll prove it. Continue reading

I’m a Christian and I Don’t Believe in “Intelligent Design”

December 17, 2015 / / 9 Comments

There’s a classic theorem out there that compares the creation of the universe to putting typewriters in a room full of monkeys. 

On one end of the spectrum are those that contend that given enough time, say billions or even an infinite number of years, the monkeys randomly pecking away at the keys will eventually type out the complete works of Shakespeare.

On the other end of the spectrum are those that argue that after even billions (or even infinite) tries of hitting on the typewriter, the monkeys might be able to accidentally type up some words, or maybe even a complete sentence, but the chances of typing up even one actual Shakespearean play are insurmountable Continue reading

I’m a Christian and I Don’t Believe in “Miracles”

December 6, 2015 / / 8 Comments

One of my more memorable experiences with the “supernatural” or the “miraculous” occurred early in my Christian walk.  I was struggling with some overwhelming issues late one night when I heard God tell me to “go out to the church and pray.”

This was not just any church; it was a beautiful church that sat up on a hill overlooking Lake Travis in Austin.  Ironically, I had never actually attended this church, but had several times gone out there to pray, sitting in my car in the parking lot.  It was also the very parking lot (as shared in 2 of my previous posts: “Why I Was Kicked Out of Vacation Bible School” and “Losing My Religion”) where for the first time I heard the “voice” of God.

Now God was calling me back to that same place, presumably to hear his voice again.   Continue reading

Losing My Religion: Why I No Longer have “Faith” in God

November 22, 2015 / / 8 Comments

So here’s the truth: the god that I have believed in for much of my life does not exist.  Yes, it’s true.  And there’s a good chance that the god you have believed in does not exist either.

But let me explain a little bit about this god I have believed in:

First, this god that I have believed in does not allow suffering…well, maybe he does for others, especially bad people and those who live in other parts of the world, but certainly not for me.  But this god obviously does not exist because I have definitely experienced my share of suffering – maybe not nearly as bad as others, but enough to occasionally make my life miserable and difficult at times…and much of it since I became a believer.  And anything less than the most comfortable existence for me is certainly too much; so my god of “no suffering” does not exist. Continue reading

God Really Likes You, But You Suck: The Confusing Message of Grace

September 20, 2015 / / 14 Comments
Photo by Melissa Baldwin

Photo by Melissa Baldwin

“♫ Amazing grace how sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me ♪” We sing about it all the time. “♪ Grace, grace, God’s grace.  Grace that is greater than all my sin ♫” We talk about it. “By grace alone you have been saved.” And we offer it to each other. “Grace to you.” It is one of the most prominent messages in the church.  But do we really know what it means?

The Greek word for grace, χάρις (charis), is most often defined as “favor” and sometimes as “kindness.”  It has the implication of favor that is freely extended – and thus often defined as “unmerited favor.”

So if God really favors you a lot that should make us really feel good right? But do we?

Last week, blogger and former evangelical Christian turned atheist, Neil Carter, tweeted:

Continue reading

We’ve Made God Too Small

September 13, 2015 / / 0 Comments
Screenshot from IMAX® 3D movie Hidden Universe showing the Helix Nebula in infrared

The Helix Nebula in infrared *

Imagine with me for a moment that the Universe called out to you. Would you follow it? And what I mean by the Universe is all that is out there: the billions of stars, the planets, the super novas, the galaxies, everything that is within them and all that you could possibly imagine, as far as the almost infinite, expanding Universe can go. And further yet, the laws that are behind all that exists in the Universe. What if it called out to you in one big unifying voice? Would you tune your ears to listen to it? Continue reading

Newer posts »

Enjoying these articles? Sign up to receive updates in your inbox.

© 2025 Honestly Thinking

Theme by Anders Noren — Up ↑