Any statement about causation or origin which uses the word chance is worthless, philosophically. The academic credentials or prestige of the person making such a statement is unimportant, the statement is still worthless. Take for example the basic belief held by most Astronomers and atheists prior to Vesto Slipher’s expanding universe discovery in 1913, “the Universe simply exploded into being, by chance, at the big bang and thus there’s no need for any God.†Or ponder the words of the Nobel scientist Jacques Monod in his book Chance and Necessity, “…chance alone is at the source of every innovation, of all creation in the biosphere. Pure chance, absolutely free but blind, at the very root of the stupendous edifice of evolution…†(page 112) Let me alert you to the fact that though we tend to use the word ‘chance’ loosely, chance is not a substance or entity that can… read more
person
A popular view among many people today is that all truth is relative; no truth is objective. By objective is meant true by means independent of the person asserting any truth-claim. For example, if someone says, “Fish is my favorite meat†that statement would be true relative to the experience of the speaker. In contrast, if someone should say, “All living things have encoded biological information in their DNA†that statement would not be relative to the speaker’s perception for it would be true regardless of who made the statement. Objective truth then, is truth beyond mere opinion. It is truth verifiable and undeniable as fact by rational beings other than the one making the claim. Strangely then, despite so much talk about living in an Age of Science & Technology that is remarkable, the belief is so common that ‘all truth is relative’. Indeed, this notion prevails not only… read more
Is there any such thing as objective morality or is everyone free to just set and follow personal moral standards? If there is no objective morality why should habitual liars or anyone for that matter, be expected to speak the truth, always or even almost always? If the rightness or wrongness of acts, motives/attitudes depend on how individuals feel then morality is hopelessly subjective and everyone has a right to do as one pleases. Objective morality rescues us from this dilemma. But what is meant by objective morality? The ‘objective’ in objective morality simply means independent of any particular person’s feelings and value judgments on the moral issue in question. As Philosopher Paul Copan says “…morality is objective in that it isn’t a function of individual or cultural preferences, opinions, or responses. Morality is objective in that it is recognized and discovered rather than invented by humans.†(“True for you… read more
There are reasons why I chose to analyse her experience with the man she loved, rather than analyse my own experience with her: 1) I was very familiar with her. When she did something I already knew what motivated her. When she said something, I knew what she really meant and wanted to communicate. I knew her better than she knew herself. I knew how she was before her rejection experience with that man, and how she became afterwards. 2) I am not better than her. Whatever she went through I knew that I was going to go through the same thing. I am just a human as she is, so I knew “No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind.†(1 Corinthians 10:13) 3) Often times our own experience are too painful at the time for us to analyse them logically, and often times the strong emotions… read more
Christians can be persecuted for not only sharing the truth of Jesus Christ which is rejected by the world, but also for living a holy life. A couple of weeks ago when I wrote about modesty I remembered so many instances when as a child I attended the Roman Catholic church in Iraq where “Christian†women would ridicule a modest woman behind her back saying things such as, “Why is she wearing this? Is she this poor?â€, or, “My goodness she has no sense of style!â€, or, “She looks so ugly and old wearing this!â€, or, “Didn’t she wear this outfit last time?†As the above example shows: often times Christians are persecuted by other “Christiansâ€. My youngest uncle’s wife was born in Egypt to a Christian Coptic Orthodox family. In her second year of medical school she met some born-again youth, and soon after she accepted Jesus Christ as… read more
I am not doubting the sincerity of Christian women’s love for Christ, and so I am not saying that those Christian women who dress immodesty are doing it because they hate Christ. But the Bible does not say we are perishing because our lack of love, no, it says we are perishing because of our lack of knowledge: “My people are destroyed from lack of knowledge. ‘Because you have rejected knowledge, I also reject you as my priests; because you have ignored the law of your God, I also will ignore your children.’†(Hosea 4:6) Also, when you love someone you have to love that person the way they want and need. For example, if my wife wants to go to a certain restaurant but I take her to the restaurant I like then I have not expressed love toward her. So it is the same with Christ: we… read more
It is actually a blasphemy to tell people who are not born-again about the commandments of God and expect them to live by them. Because when we do that we are implying that a lost person, with a sinful nature can live the Christian life without the Holy Spirit. On the contrary, when a lost person fails to live up to the standards of God then we should not be surprised, because that is exactly the purpose of the commandments: to show a lost person how far off from God’s goal of holiness he is, and how impossible it is for him to attain that goal of holiness by his own efforts. Living by the commandments was never a way to attain forgiveness, and that is why they had to sacrifice blemishless animals in the Old Testament—it has always been by the blood. Let me tell you a little story:… read more
Eight years ago I took a sexual purity online course, and it was the best Christian teaching I got. It was a daily online course for two months and I loved every day of it. One thing though I disagree with them is that they said many members who do not follow the precautionary rules (such as: move your computer to an open space in the house, or install Internet filtering software, or acquire an accountability partner, etc) fall back into sin even though they were free from it for a period of time. The problem I have with that statement is that I believe a person is only truly free if he is free on the inside through being set free by the power of the Holy Spirit. I think the best way to explain this topic is by talking about what it means to be born-again and what… read more
I’m once again at a loss for words. I’m often frustrated with life, I sit here in North America blessed with so much and yet it doesn’t bring any satisfaction. I know that there is so much more to life, all this “stuff” we have just gets in the way of what really matters. Perhaps it’s my circumstances, perhaps I’m just going through a dry spell. I want to be able to find the people who are hurting and help them. Tell them it’s okay to not have things figured out, I sure don’t. I want to tell them that in our brokenness that we can become something better. When we come to the place where we have nothing else there is a way out. I don’t care who you are or what you’ve done. You’re an amazing person. Perhaps you don’t see that right now, maybe you don’t think… read more
Last weekend we, a somewhat random group, went to Hourglass Lake. Hourglass Lake is actually two different lakes and they’re not the one (singular) you see in the shot. That’s Lower Hourglass Lake and this shot was taken near Upper Hourglass Lake. It’s named Hourglass because the top lake flows into the bottom via a waterfall. It also seems like it could be called Hourglass because Lower Hourglass Lake looks like an hourglass. I know, sort of confusing 😛 I sometimes hear things like, “You should do this, and then we’ll really see how good you are!†And I’m like, “Ummmmmmm?†I think at this point it’s time that I introduce myself. My name is Brandon Peters and I have issues. I’m full of jealousy, quick to anger, lustful, prideful, greedy, and lack self-control. And that list is not exhaustive, those are just some of the bigger issues. I never… read more
I want to change lives! I want to make the world a better place. I don’t know who you are, what kind of person you are, or what you’re trying to get out of life, but If you’re the same as everyone else, you’re probably just trying to find your way through life. Maybe you’re trying to be unique, to be noticed. Maybe you’ve been striving for the approvals of others far too long and you’ve never found it. Maybe you’ve been hiding behind a mask so long that you’ve forgotten who you really are, maybe you just feel lost in this huge world, maybe you’re feeling alone or maybe you just feel invisible. That’s not really who you are, you were built for so much more! You’re beautiful, strong, courageous, loving, and yes, you are unique. Even if these things are hidden deep down, they’re there. And that’s all… read more
I have this pack of cheap ball pens, but I’ve kept only one in my drawer in case I need a pen. First time I tried to use it it was leaking a bit so I just rubbed the tip on a piece of paper and used it. Second time it was a bit of too much of a leak for me to use it so I put the cap back on it, and returned it in my drawer and got out another pen and used that pen. I did the same for the next few times I needed to use that leaking pen. Finally when I tried to use it the leak was so bad that I didn’t even consider keeping it, I thought, “Why am I bothering with this cheap and useless pen when I have so many others that work perfectly fine?†So I broke the pen,… read more
My family always wanted to leave Iraq. My mother dreamt of living in Europe, North America, or Australia since she was a teenager. My dad also wanted to leave since he was a teenager. But we couldn’t leave until 1998 when I was 15 years old. We spent a year in Jordan and my sister, who is 2 years older than me, and I both accepted Christ in our lives there. I think being Roman Catholic teens, having our first communion a couple of years earlier, left us with a lot of questions and very few answers (if any). My sister, being a very social person, got first interested in knowing Christ as a Savior through going to church in Amman, Jordan. There was a pastor there who was teaching about Christ as a Savior and how trusting in Him can change our lives, gives us eternal life, and that… read more
This past week a group of us watched the message “The Holiness of God†by Francis Chan. It was good and I just thought I’d share some random thoughts from it. The first is this; when you face God, and every one of us will face God, you will be terrified. You won’t be able to do anything else except fall flat on your face, I’m not kidding about this. It will be the most intense moment of your life. Some people go around with a chip on their shoulder, they think that when they face God that He’s going to have to answer some pretty tough questions. You couldn’t be more wrong. Every single person who has faced God has done so terrified for his or her lives. Prophets and even he whom Jesus was closest to (John), those who had lives probably far holier than any of ours,… read more
Now let`s consider the demands of creation versus the demands of the theory of evolution. First, creation demands the presence of a Creator. The theory of evolution demands the absence of a creator. Second, creation demands the creation of matter. The theory of evolution has no explanation for the origin of matter. Third, as for the time span of the existence of the universe, creation demands the time span of recorded history. The theory of evolution demands eons of time, billions of years. Fourth, creation demands a `spirit world`. That is, the presence of a `higher power`, one who created this universe and governs its operation. This `higher power` is the giver of life. The theory of evolution does not allow for a higher power or a giver of life. The theory of evolution says life emerged spontaneously from non-living matter. Fifth, there is the fossil record. Creation demands a… read more
I have this message on my heart, it’s one that I’ve had for a long time. It has been a subtle theme in many of my messages but I’ve finally identified the root of it. It’s not a nice message; it’s one that I have spent many hours thinking about and studying. It’s based on Matthew which says, “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’†Matthew 7:21-23 During our trip to California something happened to me. Spiritually, it was a very difficult… read more
Today I watched the Francis Chan sermon called “Holiness†and he talked about some verses that we don’t normally hear about. “Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ? Shall I then take the members of Christ and make them members of a harlot? Certainly not! Or do you not know that he who is joined to a harlot is one body with her? For ‘the two,’ He says, ‘shall become one flesh.’†1 Corinthians 6:15-16 The image that Paul paints here is very strong. You see as Christians we are all part of the body of Christ, this isn’t something to be taken lightly. We all know that sexual immorality creates a spiritual bond between two people. When we are involved in sexual immorality as Christians, whether it be pornography or sexual activity outside of marriage, it’s forcing the spirit of Christ within us to engage… read more
This Inspirational Art was done on a whim after I was viewing entire photo groups on Flickr with Piclens. I actually looked at a lot of great photos very fast. Last year this was impossible!!..at least I did not know about Piclens then. “But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased.” Daniel 12:4 We have so much knowledge at our disposal now more than ever, with Google, Wiki and all the social networks out there, and not to mention all the modern inventions which have only taken place since the 19th century…it’s unbelievable!! The Lord never leave his people blind to what is going to happen, the only people who are blind to what is happening are unbelievers. It was the same way when Jesus came to earth…. read more
We all know God loves us, we are told this from the time we are very young, at least I know I was, and I am so glad that I know this, yet how many of us not only have a head knowledge of the love of God, but really understand and bank off of this fantastic and most glorious truth? God loves you. What does this mean? Well to start, we have to know what it means for God to love, what God’s definition of love is. Take a look at Romans 5:6-11, read it through again. God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. That’s the love of God, he didn’t die because he had something to get from us, but because He loved us and wanted to be made much of. We were worthless worms, fighting against God,… read more
The Cross of our Lord Jesus Christ is truly the wonder of all wonders. It seems that the more we know our God the more we realize there is so much more we don’t know. Yesterday as I moved to the back of the streetcar I smelled this terribly disgusting smell of someone who really needed to take a shower. The smell was so strong almost all the streetcar smelled bad except the very front of it. I immediately moved back to the front and sat there, but even there the smell was so overwhelming I was considering getting off of the streetcar, that’s when I realized how terribly disgusting I—a sinful person—must be to our Holy God. I mean, the difference between two human beings is finite no matter how much of a physical cleaning one of them needs. But the huge gap between a completely vile creature and… read more
I was reading this scripture passage from Psalms 41:9 this morning. This verse just stuck out to me as never before. It reminded me of Jesus and Judas, the one who clearly betrayed Jesus, who supped with the Lord at His table. Jesus knew the thoughts and intents of his heart, for the Lord knows what is in the heart of all men and women. Judas supped with Jesus, he was right there with the other disciples, why such betrayal? Do we know why? The Bible tells us such. Even my close friend in whom I trusted, who ate my bread, has lifted his heel against me. Psalm 41:9 As I pondered on the verse, It remind me of how the Lord reveals to us, His children, when we wholeheartedly seek His face for guidance, for His truth in all matters, all areas of our lives. Including when we pray… read more
Every day on the subway on my way to university I pass by this cemetery, Mount Pleasant Cemetery, and in the morning it looks so beautiful from outside: the sunlight going through the trees and people are walking through it. It looks peaceful so I decided last summer to visit it and take some pictures. I visited it on a beautiful summer evening but I didn’t take any pictures because the awareness of death’s reality and ugliness was all around me. (I only took one picture on my way out.) So I decided to visit the cemetery again but this time not to photograph its natural beauty but I wanted to capture the reality of death. I settled for this capture because as sure as the yellow and white lines separate so our souls will leave our bodies one day. Death is one of the most misrepresented facts of life…. read more
I woke up around 5:30 this particular morning and I had to take this photo! It is a photo of the moon above Toronto seen through my bedroom window. I love the red shade in the curtain, the ceiling, and my table lamp. My alarm clock says “5:49â€, and that’s because I spent 20 min in the balcony listening to the birds, watching the moon, but mostly taking photos. I even took a 30 seconds long video of the birds chirping (He he! I learned the word “chirp†from Dr. Stanley!) . But it is this photo, taken from inside, that captivated me mostly. This photo reminds me of certain times. You see when I go to crowded places for a prolonged period of time, I like to take few minutes to be alone with God. I’ve never told this to anybody because the people who know me, think that… read more
Drunkard Inspirational Art: This artwork should be self explanatory – at least, if you’re not drunk. If you are drunk, you will not be able to read it anyways. So, what’s my point? A drunkard must come to some clearness of mind, so that right choices can be made to quit the habit. Some folks can do it through family/friend interventions, others by just, one day coming to their senses and others, they need a supernatural intervention. Either way, the drunkard needs our prayer and patience, and at other times, even our forgiveness. Drunkards also need the Word of God which is like a two edged sword. Why would someone destroy their insides with a poison that brings pain, disaster, false joy and false hope? God need us to always be clear headed so that He can do his work through us. The next side of this equation is that… read more