MY BLOG POSTS

I love music. I’m listening to some music right now, as a matter of fact.  I listen to music when I am happy, when I’m blue, when I need encouragement, whenever. Over the years, I have worn out records, cassette tapes, CD’s, and iPod batteries listening to my favorite music.

Sometimes I need to sing really, really loudly in the car. Yes, need. And, yes, you’ve probably driven past me – arms all over the place, veins in my neck popping out in a way that would make voice teachers cringe.

Sometimes music is so beautiful, I want to stop everything I am doing and just listen to it, letting it sink into my bones and travel through my bloodstream.

Music is powerful. When I was thinking of how God would reveal Himself in Anomaly, I immediately thought of music.

Music is a means to worship God, to praise Him, to declare his glory. It is also, I believe, a means to hear God. I hear him in beautifully written words put to music, and I hear him in music itself.

The beauty of a tune played by a skilled musician is breathtaking. And the grandeur of a full orchestra, playing together – wow! I hear God in that, in the harmony and unity, in the grace and majesty, just like I see him in the awesomeness of his creation.

Music is a gift from God, and he speaks to our souls through it.

“It is good to praise the Lord and make music to your name” ~Psalm 92:1

Am I anti-science? Do I think the Christian faith and science cannot coexist? Do I think all scientists are evil?

I’m getting these questions from readers (because, yes, the bad guys in Anomaly are the scientists), and the short answer to them all is “no.” I am very grateful for science and scientists. People who pursue careers in science go on to find medicines that heal diseases, create products that make my life easier, find ways to rid our world of nasty things we don’t want in it. They study our world and our bodies and help us understand all that better. They are incredibly important, incredibly smart.

I do, however, have a problem with naturalism. And I respectfully, but wholeheartedly, disagree with people whose worldview is based on naturalism, whose science is based on naturalism.

Merriam-Webster defines naturalism as “a theory denying that an event or object has a supernatural significance; specifically : the doctrine that scientific laws are adequate to account for all phenomena.”

The current basis for much scientific thought is firmly based in naturalism. These scientists start with the theory that the universe was created at random, from matter that exploded or melted or was carried in on some other type of matter (where did the initial matter come from?? No one seems to have an answer for that). And from there, life developed very slowly over billions of years with no help whatsoever from any kind of Intelligent Designer. All scientific study, all research, all hypotheses with this idea as its basis is classified as “theory” or “doctrine” (see the definition above).

But that is not how those ideas are presented. They are presented as fact. And anyone who suggests they aren’t fact are ridiculed by many within the “scientific” community.

As I stated in the previous blog, I believe the basis for ALL truth is the Bible. So I believe the origin of all life is revealed in Genesis 1 – I believe that God – who is eternal – created this universe and all others. Some may think that is crazy, that it is just “faith” and faith has no business in scientific discussion. But I would argue that naturalism is also faith-based.  I know and have read many scientists who use Genesis 1 as their starting point and have come up with evidence that points to God-made world, evidence that points away from the “random chance” model touted by naturalists.

The “bad guys” in my book aren’t bad because they are scientists. They are bad because they take naturalism to its logical conclusion – life evolves, the fittest survive, the weak are destroyed, and mankind becomes better as a result. They are simply trying to make the world better. It makes perfect sense, if you really believe what naturalism argues.

But I don’t.

I believe in the God of the Bible. I believe He created the world. I believe he sent a world-wide flood, that he parted the waters in the Red Sea, that he saved a man from a giant, another from hungry lions, I believe He healed the sick and raised the dead, and that He loves us so much that He sent his son to this world he created to save us from sins we’d often rather wallow in than turn from. I choose to believe the only One who was there at the beginning of the world – God Himself.

I deal with the issue of Truth in my new book. Why? Because it’s an issue we deal with all the time. It’s an issue Christians can shy away from, afraid we’ll offend with our position – if it’s our position – that there is truth. Absolute truth. Truth with a capital “T.”

With so much information out there, so many people claiming to know what’s true, what’s right, who’s wrong, how can we possibly know what’s true? And isn’t it just arrogant to say we Christians have the corner on the market of Truth? Narrow-minded?

The bottom line, for me, is this question: what is your source of Truth? No matter what you believe, whether you are a Christian, an atheist or anything in between, we all have something on which we base our understanding of truth. If you believe there is a God – why do you believe that? If you believe there is no God – why do you believe that? If you believe we can’t know for sure whether or not there is a God, if you believe all paths lead to God, whatever you believe – why do you believe it?

If you’ve read this blog or my books, you know that I believe in the Word of God, that it is holy and inspired by God and that it, alone, is the source of Truth. I believe God gave us his Word so we could know Him – his holiness, his grace, his mercy. I believe all Truth is found in that book and that we should devote ourselves to studying it, rightly dividing it, and living it out. I don’t believe it is simplistic nor do I believe it is impossible to understand.

After 20+ years of walking with the Lord and spending time in his His word, I have seen that it is what is claims: it is “living and active” (Hebrews 4:12). I have been changed by this word, I have been comforted by it, I have been guided and taught and corrected by it. Through it, I have seen God, walked with Jesus. I do not believe we can have a vibrant Christian life without time in this Word, without daily doses of Truth. There is no substitute, no reason without it.

Opinions of the created, without roots in the Creator, are useless. No matter how beautiful, no matter how comforting, no matter how un-offensive.

“All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate,equipped for every good work.” ~II Tim. 3:16-17

I need to take a break from talking about Anomaly and the iPad mini giveaway and just get back to blogging about what’s going on in my head.

But the Anomaly release is what’s going on in my head. Actually, that’s not true. People’s reactions to the Anomaly release is what’s on my mind.

Having a book release is amazing. Exciting. Unreal. This is my fourth book, but’s it’ still like an out-of-body experience. I am writing books! And people are reading them! Wow.

But having a book release is also scary. People are reading my books! And some people don’t like them. At all. Sometimes, the criticisms are because “there’s too much God in them”. I’m okay with those criticisms. I am unashamedly Christian, and I hope my passion for Christ saturates every book I write. But some readers just don’t like my stories, my writing style, my characters. Ouch. And, while writers are told not to read reviews, I can’t help myself. It’s like driving by a car wreck. You don’t mean to look. You spent the ten minutes before you got to it angry at the people who were stopping. But then you’re there. And it’s there. And you just can’t help yourself.

So I read the reviews and I start measuring myself by the opinions of others. Lots of stars, and I am happy, confident, floating on air. But even one “I couldn’t even finish it, this book was so bad” review, and I am sighing into my coffee, waiting for a phone call from my publisher saying they’re pulling this awful book and kicking me to the curb.

All of you reading this have been criticized for something, sometime. It’s part of all of our lives. If you play sports or sing or paint or even wear clothes, you are susceptible to criticism. Some people don’t care (or say they don’t care) what people think. Some people try a preemptive strike – criticizing others before others can criticize them. Some try desperately to make others like them so they won’t be criticized. And some just try to disappear so no one notices them, thus avoiding criticism.

None of those responses is healthy. I know. I have tried them all. And what I learned is that I need to stop getting so worked up about what others think and focus instead on what God thinks. His is the opinion that really matters. His corrections are helpful, his love is unconditional, and I am here, on this earth, to bring him glory. And I am much, MUCH happier when I focus on pleasing God and not on pleasing others, when I let his words rattle around in my brain:

“For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons,neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” ~Romans 8:38-39