General Revelation

Our next excerpt from Natasha Crain's Talking with Your Kids about God is: The knowledge about God that we obtain through the observation of nature is called general revelation.

Psalm 19:1-2
The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they reveal knowledge."

The apostle Paul says there is no excuse for not believing in God because He has so clearly revealed himself in nature:

The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of people, who suppress the truth by their wickedness, since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities - his eternal power and divine nature - have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse. (Romans 1:18-20)

Paul goes on to say that God has also given humans an innate knowledge of right and wrong - a moral conscience:

(Indeed, when Gentiles, who do not have the law, do by nature things required by the law, they are a law for themselves, even though they do not have the law. They show that the requirements of the law are written on their hearts, their consciences also bearing witness, and their thoughts sometimes accusing them and at other times even defending them.) This will take place on the day when God judges people's secrets through Jesus Christ, as my gospel declares. (Romans 2:14-16)

WHY PEOPLE DISAGREE ABOUT the EVIDENCE
 for GOD in NATURE

To answer that, we need to understand four key points about the nature of any evidence that doesn't literally speak for itself.

1. Evidence is a body of facts that require human interpretation.

    People look at the evidence in the natural world inevitably draw different conclusions. That doesn't
    make the evidence any less valuable for consideration. It's simply the nature of any evidence.

2. Because evidence requires human interpretation, there will always be multiple possible
    explanations for it.

   The relevant question is not how many possible explanations there are but rather which is the most
   likely explanation given the evidence.

3. If we rule out certain possible explanations before considering the evidence, we on't ever
    conclude that the evidence points to those explanations.

    If we rule out God before we even consider the evidence, of course we will conclude there's no 
    evidence that points to God!

4. The best explanation for a body of evidence is often debatable and rarely certain.

    We may determine a best explanation, but even best explanations aren't certain.

So How Do We Start Our Thought Process
on Evidence of God in Nature?

Try writing your thoughts in a journal!

Imagine that you grew up without hearing anything that's in the Bible. What, if anything, do you think you would be able to know about God from looking at the world around you.

Evidence from nature- such as the universe, life, and our innate moral knowledge - provides good reason to believe that a Being consistent with whom we call God exists.

Dive Deeper

Read:
Psalm 19:1-2

Romans 1:18-20

Romans 2:14-16

What does each passage say the natural world can tell us about God?

Most of what we know about God comes from the Bible. If you don't read it much you should. How else can you personally know about Him if you do not know what it says? 

Why do you think evidence for God's existence outside the Bible and our personal experiences is important - for both Christians and nonbelievers?

People can draw very different conclusions about the meaning of any evidence depending on their assumptions, life experiences, and motivations. What are some ways those things might impact whether people believe the evidence in the natural world points to God?

NOW LET US APPLY IT

It's great to be proactive in our thoughts so we know how to respond when the situation presents itself.

When Someone says there's "no evidence" for God (or anything else), what questions could you ask to clarify what that person means?

As you can see Natasha invokes thought provoking questions that we all need to think about and be ready to have an answer for. Trust me, one gets tired of feeling defeated because they can't offer an explanation. As I once heard an atheist say to me when I was younger. " Why should I convert to Christianity if Christians can't even explain why they believe in God or give evidence that He exists?". 

Discipline and Direction

I really love what Natasha Crain says here from her introduction of "Talking with Your Kids about God: 30 conversations Every Christian Parent Must Have".

When we have no discipline and no direction, we're leaving our kids to wilt spiritually.
This happens when we're inconsistent in " watering" their spiritual lives (no discipline) and when we don't understand all that they need to thrive (no direction). It's an easy trap to fall into when we're busy. Our spiritual training ends up being a mealtime prayer here and there, a wishy-washy commitment to church, and occasional references to the Bible thrown in for good measure (especially when someone's behaving badly). If guilt takes over, we may "drench" our kids with more church activities or devotionals for a while, but for many kids, it's too little, too late.

I knew from teaching in the public school system that I wanted to send my kids to a private Christian school. What concerned me most is the culture of the kids. Today's kids think every thing should be given to them. They curse non stop, disrespect authority, have no will to learn, do not respect themselves and want nothing to do with God. I feel bad because most of them have a traumatic home life. I just do not want my kids to be swayed by the culture we live in. Then you have the side of can we afford private school? Do I really want to have a double mortgage/college tuition payment from the time they are born through college? 

We spend so much time wanting other people to raise and to educate our kids but the first place education should take forth is at home. 

I love the summers off because my routine is a Christian Home School approach. When I'm back at work I'm often left with no energy to come back to my own kids. Often they are shoved in front of a TV while I get dinner and prep lunches for the next day. I try for a Bible story at bedtime but if bath time runs late well then you know.


So Let's Begin. HELP OUR KIDS TO THINK FOR THEMSELVES

1. Why is it important to learn about the evidence for God's existence in nature?
To get kids thinking about this subject ask, "How do you know God exists?" 

Be sure to affirm that personal experience is important in the life of a Christian, but explain why it's also important to understand the objective evidence God has given us in nature.

2. Clarify Terminology. Kids need to know exactly what certain words and concepts mean so they don't get ambushed or confused when hearing others professions. Let's start with these:

          An Atheist: Is someone who believes there is no God.
          An Agnostic: is someone who believes nothing is known or can be known about the existence
                                 or nature of God.
          A Skeptic: is a broader catchall category of people who reject the claims of Christianity.
          A Theist: is someone who believes in a God who interacts with his creation (for example,
                           Judaism, Christianity, and Islam are all theistic faiths).

3. Help kids remember the evidence by teaching them to memorize the"big three" questions that are heavily debated in today's world.
         Where did the universe come from?
         Where did life come from?
         Where did our moral understanding come from?

The Push

Many who know me think I'm just a Hell Brimstone Fire preacher but I do have other passions. A passion to sit outside on a deck with a sweet breeze sipping tea and reading for one.

As I reflect on my life, teaching high school, and now having little girls of my own I've realized a couple of things. 

The State of Christians:
Many Christians profess just that, " I'm a Christian." Yet they do not know or can tell others anything besides Jesus is the Son of God and that He loves them. You can look at their life and realize they don't even know enough to have an inward change to reflect the God they serve. No application of the Word of God because they do not read it nor apply it. Their every day speech resembles Nightly TV, the mouths love the taste of liquor, beer and wine. Don't even try to correct them as offense rises up because God knows their heart... YES HE DOES!

Just out of curiosity and I know I'm not alone thinking this but why does the majority of the church want to look the same inside and out as the world (non professing christians)? Why can't we stand apart? Why isn't it OBVIOUS that we stand for God and the principles, values He has called us to?

I have sat in classes and have seen Christian students being attacked because they could not offer reason to their beliefs. The common question of " HOW DO YOU KNOW...?" 
I've been there, have you?

I have seen those growing up in Christian households fallaway from the faith because their parents or their Church (IF) they attend regularly and pay attention may not give them foundation of real day adequate answers of defending our faith with boldness and confidence.

Our Blooming Generation:
I wanted to learn how to defend my faith. I want my girls to know God isn't real just because I say so but there is pure evidence He exist. I don't want them to doubt or to be deceived by every wind or doctrine that comes their way. I Need them to Believe God for themselves and to not be afraid to face the questions bound to come their way in school, social media, and on the street. I know I'm not alone on wanting to raise Kingdom Warriors.


In my research I found an author, Natasha Crain, who wrote a book called "Talking with Your Kids about God: 30 Conversations Every Christian Parent Must Have" I felt led to share key points and topics to help our families engage, be empowered, and to grow in Christ defending our Faith.

GET THIS BOOK!