The Christian Atheist: Believing in God but Living As If He Doesn't Exist

God doesn't want us to be happy when it causes us to do something wrong or unwise

Love keeps no record of wrongs, but bitterness keeps detailed accounts.

Shame usually follows a pattern—a cycle of self-recrimination and lies that claims life after life. First, we experience an intensely painful event. Second, we believe the lie that our pain and failure is who we are—not just something we’ve done, or had done to us—and we experience shame. And finally, our feelings of shame trap us into thinking that we can never recover—that, in fact, we don’t even deserve to.

No matter what I feel, I hold the assurance that God never leaves me.

When we live by faith, we believe that God has everything under control. But if we start to worry, how we live says the opposite.

...If we believe that God wants us happy above all else, rather than acknowledging that our role is to serve God, we wrongly believe that God exists to serve us. God becomes a a means to our end: happiness.

Sometimes what we think will make us happy is the opposite of what God wants for us.

If God has done what you think he should do, trust him. If God doesn't do what you think he should do, trust him. If you pray and believe God for a miracle and he does it, trust him. If your worst nightmare comes true, believe he is sovereign. Believe he is good.

If you're not dead, you're not done.

Who do we believe in more? Ourselves or God? Our actions and decisions will reflect that.

El primer paso para llegar a vencer la vergüenza consiste en aceptar lo que no podemos cambiar.

No es difícil conocer a Dios, y no se trata de un conjunto de reglas. Sí, Dios quiere tu obediencia, pero más que eso desea tu corazón.

Jesus never criticized prayers that were honest, only those that were long and showy.

God is not calling us to go to church; he is calling us to be his church, the hope of the world.

If you’re not ministering and using your gifts in the church, then something God wants done is being ignored.

If God does what you think he should do, trust him. If God doesn’t do what you think he should do, trust him. If you pray and believe God for a miracle and he does it, trust him. If your worst nightmare comes true, believe he is sovereign. Believe he is good.

But if we've honestly done everything we can, by definition we can't do anything more.

If you honestly want to change, surround yourself with people who will help, people who believe you can do it.

¡Imagina lo que sería posible si dejamos de ir a la iglesia y empezamos a ser la iglesia!

Como un cristiano ateo que lucha, tengo mis preguntas y dudas sobre Dios, pero estoy agradecido de que como el hombre ciego que fue sanado, no me hace falta entenderlo todo para creer.

Dios responderá algunas oraciones de la manera en que lo esperas. No obstante, en otras ocasiones no será así. Ese es el misterio de la oración. No podemos reducir la oración a una fórmula.

Rather, we are who God says we are: his children. We are forgivable. We are changeable. We are capable. We are moldable. And we are bound by the limitless love of God.

Wisdom is all about the simple, often tiny, obvious things, done consistently, one at a time.

But God does give us responsibility, and it takes biblical faith to do those things in dependence on God.

A Christian who met a total stranger who also followed Christ would have an instant bond: We belong to the same spiritual family. Just like Michelle, the girl on the plane, felt an immediate bond with me because of Christ, so should we with other Christians. When we as believers are committed to Christian fellowship, we are known and needed. We each have certain gifts and roles to play. Without us, the church is incomplete. When we use our God-given gifts in relationship with fellow Christians, we experience the deep satisfaction of being a part of the larger body of Christ.

My dysfunctional relationship with God was often like that. I’ve always believed in God, just not enough to trust him with my whole life in his wheelbarrow. I knew God could fulfill his promises, but I was never sure he’d do it for me. My selfish Christian Atheist view was that God existed for me, rather than I for him. If he’d do what I thought he should, I’d trust him more. If he’d come through for me, I’d give him more of my life. If he made my life better and pain-free, I’d believe him more passionately. But anytime God didn’t meet my expectations, we had a problem. God created me in his image. I returned the favor and created him in mine. The kind of God I wanted to believe in was this: if he’s not what I want, then he can’t have my whole life.

Imagine how your life might change if you were willing to say to your church and to God, My answer is yes. Anything. Anywhere. Anytime. Use me as your church and for your glory.

When he chose friends, Jesus surrounded himself with the lonely, the broken, and the overlooked. God is calling you to be a part of his church, to be his church. If you don’t feel like you’re good enough, then you’re exactly who he’s looking for.

When we truly know God, rather than living ashamed of our past of doubting God’s love for us, we can daily enjoy his grace and unconditional love and acceptance. As our faith and prayer life grows, we’ll see his goodness—even in our trials—and grow to forgive as he has freely forgiven us.