Where To Testify

Most Christians I know are more than willing to sit down with others and discuss why they believe. Some are naturally reticent, but they are that with other subjects to. Especially in evangelical churches, we take to heart:

Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen. (Matthew 28:19-20 KJV)

I've seen little in the way of testimony from atheists. Two come to mind. First is a teen who prayed that her mother not succumb to a terminal disease. When her mother died, she determined that since her prayer was not answered, there is no God. I read of her during a lawsuit she filed to remove a reference to God in another student’s writing.

Another wrote me that after reading of all the innocents killed by the command of God in the Old Testament, he could not accept a God who caused them.

Most of what I read, though, picks one or two concepts of Christianity and mocks or derides people who believe. Richard Dawkins is an example, and he’s considered:

A preeminent scientist -- and the world's most prominent atheist -- asserts the irrationality of belief in God and the grievous harm religion has inflicted on society, from the Crusades to 9/11.

It is my understanding that atheists do support his viewpoints, and they consider any religion irrational. I did find this review interesting:

For a scientist who criticizes religion for its intolerance, Dawkins has written a surprisingly intolerant book, full of scorn for religion and those who believe. ... He insists that religion is a divisive and oppressive force, but he is less convincing in arguing that the world would be better and more peaceful without it.

Why is this on my mind? Because I have acquaintances who believe there is no God. That places them within the definition atheist. How can I witness to someone who does not believe in the divine inspiration of the Bible, nor in One who inspires?

Oddly enough, that lighthouse graphic above helped me. Lighthouses do not move around looking for ships to protect. They stand in one spot spreading the news that there are obstacles to safe travel – though they never travel. I need not seek out someone who will listen to my testimony, God will send them to me when I have one to share.

That lighthouse isn’t perfect. Note some rust, some dirt. Surely maintenance is required. Still, it does the job of testifying to travelers.

Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven. (Matthew 5:16 KJV)

What we are to do is positive. It is what Zacharias prophesied of his son, John:

To give light to them that sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace. (Luke 1:79 KJV)