He came that Sunday and several Sundays after, and connected with a group of our friends. Everyone enjoyed Joe’s company, and we engaged in many lively conversations about politics, religion, family, and our different beliefs about God.  We were all sad to see him leave Canada and travel – we knew we’d miss him, and we desperately wanted him to encounter Jesus! We sent him with a couple of books, and our heartfelt prayers & appreciation.  Little did we know what God had in mind for him as he left…

Just this week (almost a year after I’d last seen him), Joe called to tell me of a change that had happened in his life, and about his decision to get baptized this Sunday!  I was astounded! After leaving us in Canada, he had – in his words – begun to open his heart and read the Bible in a completely different way.  He realized he was a sinner in need of grace, and had made Jesus his Saviour!  I couldn’t believe this was the same Joe I had known just a year ago!  His language had completely changed, and instead of doubt and intellectual suspicion, he now spoke of an incredible purpose and joy!

What a privilege to see how the Holy Spirit works in His time and in His way to draw people like Joe to Himself…

*Names are changed for anonymity.

We’ve all asked “why?” at some point or another.  Chris Keith has been asking why for most of his life.

He was 12 years old when his grandparents decided he was old enough to know the truth.  His whole family – his parents and his older brother Mikey – did not die in a car accident as he has been told.  The were the victims of a murder-suicide at the hands of Chris’ Dad.   Chris learned that his father had shot him point blank in the head as well, that paramedics had declared him dead as well until somehow he moved a little and they realized he was still alive.

Chris is left with a lifetime of whys.  Why did his father do this? Why did his Mom take a violent drunk back into her life again and again? Why did Chris survive while his brother died? Why wasn’t it the other way around?

Learning to live with “why?”

Years of therapy, a strong faith and the love of his grandparents have helped Chris as he walks through his own story, but nothing is ever going to make what happened okay.  In a recent article for CNN Chris describes laying awake at night during his high school years, “just thinking”.

Philosophers, pastors and cynics have all tried to answer the question why, but few of them have had to live it as Chris has.  The search for meaning, the longing for life to have a purpose and a direction is common to all of us.  We want to belong, we want our lives to count.  We need it.  Our very souls crave it.

In his book Soul Cravings Erwin McManus discusses his own search for the answers to these very questions.   He writes, “Our souls crave to know the truth, and we need to pursue it at all cost. Whatever the implication, whatever it takes us, we must search for meaning, strive for understanding, struggle to make sense of life, never give up on the belief that the truth is out there.”

If you find yourself asking the same questions and want to learn more about the search for intimacy, destiny and meaning join us for a special chat series on Soul Cravings Monday nights at 9pm EST. The series starts on August 30th and runs every Monday until September 27.

How do you answer the whys in your own life?