 | Reverend Dennis Paschke is the senior pastor at Evangel Holton United Methodist Church, in Holton Kansas. Evangel church is a vital and growing congregation full of life that is changing lives and our community one person at a time. Dennis’ family emigrated from North Dakota to Alberta, Canada to homestead when his father was just a young boy. Rev. Paschke returned to the United States and has lived in many parts of the country. His life has afforded him many blessings before answering God’s call to full-time ministry, including being a vice president of a Fortune 100 company, serving as a chairman of the 1988 Winter Olympic Games and holding a U.S. patent. His greatest blessing in life is his walk with Christ! He believes strong faith always engages the heart and mind. EDUCATION: BSEE from the University of Calgary, Canada, and a Master’s of Divinity from Saint Paul School of Theology. FAMILY: He is married to wife Dawn and they have three sons Corey, Kyle and Marc. The family also includes one “wonder-dog” named Tucker! You can reach Reverend Paschke via email dpasch01@gmail.com. |
Religion
2011-03-01 10:26:00
Is there evidence proving God’s existence?
Answer: Any time we learn of the truth of the existence of something we always begin with an act of faith that it is true. Then when our experience provides the evidence of its existence we come to know it to be real. In other words, our experience proves the truth of the existence of something. This is also true for evidence of God’s existence.
Let’s use an example to illustrate. We have all been told that there is a universal force of gravity, even though there is no way to see it. The force of gravity itself is invisible so we can only experience the affect of its existence. Our evidence for its existence comes through our experience of that force when we stumble and fall down a set of stairs, or throw a baseball and notice something always pulls the ball to the ground. Therefore, evidence of the existence of gravity is based upon first our faith that there is such a force called gravity, and then it becomes true through our experience of its existence (the evidence). Ironically whenever we doubt something we do take it on faith, a faith in doubting that it is true! If we chose not to first take on faith the truth and seek for the evidence then we will never experience it as reality. The same is true for the evidence of the existence of God.
Let’s look at an analogy. Suppose we could speak to a frog that lives in a pond about the beauty of the ocean. The frog cannot even begin to appreciate the beauty of the ocean or believe in its existence until it first accepts on faith that such a thing as the ocean can and does exist, and then proves this so by experiencing it. Once it does experience the truth of the ocean’s existence (the evidence) nothing is ever the same! If the frog chooses not to embrace faith in the truth and seek the existence of the ocean - it holds onto faith in doubt, and everything remains and looks like life in a pond! But in the end it’s the frog’s choice!
When one starts with faith in the truth that God exists in our lives and the world, we begin to experience God in many ways in our lives (the evidence). Our heart and mind cannot see God with clarity through our experience until we chose to focus on the world in the way that God sees the world and take this on faith. When we focus our heart and mind through God’s lens our experience brings to focus both heart and mind and enables us to see the evidence for the existence of God. God will not force you to look at the world through His lens but when we do, God does for us what we cannot do alone - God becomes visible to our heart and mind!
There are many places we can see the evidence of the existence of God in the world. For example we see that it is at the darkest hour of night that light begins to emerge! We see new and abundant life springing forth in the seasons with a depth of beauty that shouts of a living giving God that brings new life! We see the currency of compassion, mercy and forgiveness offered and received that overcomes bitterness, fear, hatred and brings peace! We see the power of God’s sacrificial love, healing and empowering lives with a purpose and meaning that no human heart or mind alone can ever imagine alone! All of these examples are but a few that shout of evidence for the existence of God!
As our ability to see God in the world and our lives grows it translates into happiness and our hearts are filled with God’s love that spills back out into the world in service and love to neighbor! This is perhaps the most obvious evidence of the existence of God - God alive in those who will take on faith the truth of His existence and then share it!
To know God exists and is real is to experience Him in your life. We must do what He won’t do for us, believe in Him on faith, trust in Him with our life choices, and as we do we come to experience the evidence of His existence. Those who chose not to do so won’t be able to speak of the evidence of God’s existence since they chose life in a pond. In the end of the matter the choice is yours and mine. Just as surely as we know the love of anyone is real through our experience, when you taste and see God’s love, nothing is ever the same! The difference is surely as clear as believing honey is sweet and having the experience of the actual taste of its sweetness!
