The New Gospel

My attitude at the time was that it is not necessary to know how an automobile works in order to drive one; nor is it imperative to become a biblical scholar or theologian in order to save souls from damnation.  All of that could be left to the experts who, I believed, had already figured it all out and who could provide the historical, rational, documentary archaeological evidences if anyone ever asked.

I remember being late for a meeting, not able to find a parking place near the event.  Believing that the creator of the universe was intimately concerned with my daily activities, I prayed, “Dear God, please help me find a place to park,” and a car backed out of a parking slot right near the door!  “Thank you, Jesus,” I said, believing that this was a direct answer to my prayer.  What I was forgetting were the thousands of similar prayers I had prayed before that moment that simply evaporated into the air.  Not thinking critically, I assumed that the “successful” coincidences were proof that God answers prayer while the failures were proof that there was something wrong with me.

I [as a believer] assumed that the successful prayers were proof that God answers prayer while the failures were proof that there was something wrong with me.