God Archives - Page 37 of 135 - DOES GOD EXIST? TODAY

December 22, 2022December 19, 2022

Drugs and Highway Safety

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) released a report on drugs and highway safety (December 2022) showing data from seven level-one trauma centers and four medical centers around the country. Of 7,279 road users tested, 20% of drivers had blood alcohol levels of .08% or higher, exceeding the legal limit in every state. However, they also found that 20% of those tested were positive for two or more drugs, so alcohol was only part of the problem. The studies also found that over 50% of injured pedestrians and just over 43% of injured bicyclists had a drug in their bloodstreams.

In addition to recreational drugs making highways unsafe for all of us, new studies released by the American Lung Association show the effect of long-term marijuana smoking. Data gathered at Ottawa Hospital in Canada show that 93% of older marijuana smokers had developed emphysema. That is higher than the rate in cigarette smokers, which was 67%. However, the data on non-smokers that have come out over the years suggests that emphysema is not a significant concern unless a person is around second-hand smoke.

Addiction to recreational drugs, including alcohol, is not just a problem for the users. Last week, here in Niles, Michigan, a friend was driving on Main Street with her child in a car seat. A person pulled out of the local marijuana distribution shop without looking, hitting, and totaling my friend’s car. I was putting groceries in my car at the local supermarket when a guy drove into the parking lot at high speed, doing wheelies and forcing me and several others to run into the grocery store to avoid being hit. The policeman later told me the driver had just come from the marijuana store and was using the drug as he drove.

This issue goes beyond drugs and highway safety. The further our society goes away from God, the more pain, suffering, disease, and abuse we can expect to see. Christians know that our bodies are the temple of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 3:16), and we should take care of them. Therefore, bringing the gospel of Christ to our society is not just a spiritual issue. It is also a clear road to a better and safer life for all of us.

December 21, 2022December 19, 2022

Alien Minerals and Alien Life

Andrew Locock at the University of Alberta discovered two new minerals in a fragment of the El Ali meteorite that landed in Somalia. These minerals had never been found naturally on Earth, although scientists had synthesized them in a lab. Chris Herd, an Earth and Atmospheric Sciences professor and curator of the University of Alberta’s meteorite collection, named the two alien minerals “Elaliite” and “Elkinstantonite.”

The tabloids try to use this find to suggest that alien worlds exist that are radically different from Earth. The fact is that these minerals contain the common elements iron, potassium, and oxygen. Like many other “alien minerals” such as Brianite, Xifengite, and Heamanite, scientists have synthesized them. Inorganic materials can form new chemical configurations when they are subjected to temperatures and pressures not seen on Earth’s surface. All of these minerals with unfamiliar names are the product of conditions not present on the surface of our planet.

There are chemical restraints on what elements can sustain life. Biologists tell us that life is “that form that can move, breathe. respond to outside stimuli, and reproduce.” The elements that make those functions possible are carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, and nitrogen. For example, living things made of iron are not chemically possible, yet iron is the dominant element in meteorites. Oxygen is the one oxidizing element that allows respiration without adverse chemical reactions that would prevent life from surviving. For that reason, life forms breathing chlorine or bromine are not possible.

At the same time, alien minerals in meteorites do not mean that alien life is impossible. On the contrary, if there is life in space, it will be made of the same elements that we are. It may not look like us or live as we do, but we will not have any trouble identifying it as life.

Every time this issue comes up, it reminds me of my experience on a radio show. I was in Washington, D.C., doing a call-in talk show with Larry King (before he became famous) and a local atheist. We had a lively discussion about science and faith with some references to alien life. A caller said to the atheist, “What would you do if a spaceship landed on the White House Lawn and a little green man jumped out with a Bible in his hand and said, ‘Has Jesus been here yet?’” Before I could point out some problems with that proposal, my atheist opponent looked at me, smiled, and said, “Punt.” Larry King responded by going to a commercial.

December 20, 2022December 20, 2022

Slime in the Natural World

If you are around kids, you may be familiar with a toy called slime. The slime toy is a messy, oozy material that is sticky but doesn’t leave residue on your fingers. It’s slippery but has a texture that allows kids to mold it into various shapes. However, slime is more than a toy. We see different forms of slime in the natural world.

The slugs in your garden and most mollusks use slime, and the nasal mucus of a variety of animals is slime. The idea for the toy that kids love to play with originated from observing slime in the natural world. Slugs use mucus slime to lubricate their path and to stick to walls. Mollusks use slime in several ways, including making pearls. Natural slime is a highly designed material that allows animals and humans to function.

The saliva that keeps your mouth wet is one form of slime, but other forms of slime or mucus produced by your body are essential for survival. Slime in the form of mucus lubricates your esophagus so that food can go down your throat. The slime that lines your stomach protects it from acids. Slime in the natural world contains proteins called mucins. Chemists have found that animals produce mucins by adding a designed chain of amino acids to an existing protein, making it much longer.

A study into the chemistry of slime in the natural world has found some potential new uses for this material. For example, Omer Gokcumen, director of the study at the University of Buffalo, says that it may lead to new ways to treat cancer and other illnesses in the mouth and throat.

God is an incredible chemist. We see unique forms of chemistry in our bodies and the biological world around us. Gokcumen’s work focused on saliva, our first defense against pathogens, allowing us to eat various foods. Food chemistry is highly complex, and understanding how the body can handle new forms of food is becoming increasingly important. Around the world, people eat very different things than what we find in the typical American diet. Thanks to God’s design, the chemistry of slime makes it possible to feed every human on the planet.

Reference: National Science Foundation Research Reports for December 2022.

December 19, 2022December 17, 2022

Sweaters for Squirrels

I got a call from a lady who was making sweaters for squirrels. She was concerned that the cold weather would make the squirrels shiver and get sick if they didn’t have protection. I tried to tell her that her heart was in the right place, but God had already made wonderful coats for the squirrels. Because of that, they do not require winter clothing to add to what God had already given them. That led to a discussion of birds who didn’t have fur coats. I asked her if she knew about goose down, and she admitted she had a goose down winter coat. “But those poor little birds on my feeder don’t have down,” she replied, “and I have seen them shiver.” Sweaters for birds seem to be more problematic than sweaters for squirrels.

That exchange started me thinking about the many ways God has equipped living things for cold climates like the one here in Michigan. When I taught physics in the public high schools of South Bend, Indiana, we covered conduction, convection, and radiation. I began the discussion on conduction by asking why we wear clothes, outside of the obvious one. The thermal conductivity of various kinds of clothing helps us stay warm in winter and cool in summer. For example, goose down is a good insulator because it holds pockets of air, and air does not conduct heat well. Likewise, the design of skin and hair involves thermal conductivity, which is why being immersed in cold water takes heat out of our bodies rapidly, causing hypothermia.

Fat is another insulating material, and having very little fat in one’s body can cause rapid heat loss. Even the color of one’s skin or hair can make a difference. One of the experiments that I had my students do was to take two identical cans and paint one black and the other white. We would then put boiling water in each can and measure the temperature of the can every minute, graphing the cooling curve of the two cans. The black can would cool much faster than the white can; in this case, the cooling is by radiation, another heat transfer method. We all know that black objects absorb heat from sunlight better than white objects. Therefore, black things also release heat more rapidly.

The physics of heat transfer is another design feature built into living things. All animals are designed with the right equipment to survive in their natural environment. That is why we don’t need to make sweaters for squirrels. However, when humans move animals to a radically different climate, the result can be dangerous.

Climate change is causing some animals to migrate to latitudes where their survival is not threatened. That is also a design feature of life. In Job 39, God challenges Job with questions about design features in living things. We are only now beginning to understand the answers to some of those questions.

December 17, 2022December 15, 2022

The Influence of Christianity on Meeting Human Needs

The Influence of Christianity to Make a Difference

At this time of year, a wide range of organizations addressing some human need solicit money from those of us who try to wisely use what God has provided. My personal list is 98 organizations that I have attempted to help in some way during 2022. What kind of organizations are these, and what does it say about the influence of Christianity?

The largest group of requests comes from organizations dealing with health issues. Many of those groups deal with vision problems, including blindness, eye diseases like glaucoma, and correctable problems like congenital cataracts, but also guide dog programs. Of the 98 organizations, 36 of them deal with health problems. Of the 36, nearly half are Christian organizations that supply things like ships with surgical facilities that travel around the world.

The next largest group is organizations dealing with poverty and hunger. Of the 20 groups doing this kind of work, all of them are Christian organizations. Another 13 are environmental groups, and 6 of those are Christian organizations. That adds up to 69 of the 98 being in these three areas or 70% of the total. Of those, 44 are Christian-operated–47% of the total.

Of the remaining 29 groups, 7 are child-care organizations, and all are Christian groups. Two are disaster relief groups, and both are associated with Christian organizations. Several other areas of concern have Christian connections but are not managed by a Christian group. For example, wildlife conservation, veterans, and entertainment programs involve some Christians but are not sponsored by a Christian organization.

How many atheists, naturalists, and world religious groups in the United States are involved in the issues of today’s world? The media takes great delight in telling about a mistake by a Christian leader or hypocrisy in a Christian organization. However, the press ignores the work done by groups claiming allegiance to Jesus Christ, even though the influence of Christianity in charitable work is evident.

Jesus said, “by their fruits you shall know them.” False claims and moral corruption by some claiming to be Christians and even Christian leaders will eventually be rooted out. The good things done by groups and individuals who sacrificially give to address the world’s problems live on and will be seen in eternity. Read Matthew 25:34-46 and see what Jesus says about it.

December 16, 2022December 15, 2022

The Death of the Dead Sea

One of the most interesting places on Earth is the Dead Sea. This body of water between Israel and Jordan is located 1400 feet below sea level at its surface. The lake is 978 feet deep and is fed by the Jordan River. The water is so salty that a person entering the lake floats so that most of their body is above the lake’s surface. The minerals that make the lake salty are essential and have been mined for centuries by simply evaporating the water. Health spas have sprung up around the lake, bringing in a busy tourist trade. However, we may be approaching the death of the Dead Sea.

The geology that has produced the lake is another interesting feature. The Jordan Rift Valley is a long depression between two geologic faults, known as a graben. Grabens are common on Earth, but this one is unusually deep.

One reason for the potential death of the Dead Sea is that in recent years it has been evaporating much more rapidly than ever before due to climate change. As a result, in some years, the lake’s surface has fallen four feet. As the lake level drops, numerous sinkholes have formed where the exposed ground that used to be at the bottom of the lake dries and collapses. As a result, an area that contained roads and beaches is now dotted with sinkholes making it too dangerous for travel.

However, the death of the Dead Sea has multiple causes. The Jordan River is essentially not flowing into the lake as people have diverted its water for drinking and irrigation. People also use evaporation ponds to recover minerals, accelerating the water loss. Between human over-use and climate change, the Dead Sea is rapidly becoming inhospitable to any human use or travel.

Concerned parties have proposed ways to stop water loss, but they require cooperation that is difficult to achieve. This is one more case where the human responsibility to care for what God has given us remains unmet. Trying to deny the problem exists is difficult when the evidence is overpowering. Human greed and exploitation, plus climate changes, may lead to the death of the Dead Sea.

Reference: NPR for 12/11/22 by Ofir Berman and Daniel Estrin

December 15, 2022December 14, 2022

Abortion War Is Missing the Point

Roe v. Wade and the Supreme Court decision has affected almost every aspect of American life. Politicians have jumped into the abortion war not only as a party platform, either pro or con but also as a fund-raising device. I counted eleven organizations using anti-abortion messages in solicitations we recently received. Planned Parenthood reports a 4000% increase in donations to their pro-abortion efforts. The political involvement in the abortion issue is staggering.

Planned Parenthood has received billions of dollars from taxpayers since the year 2000. Laws like the one in Indiana requiring health providers to bury or cremate fetal tissue have been upheld by a federal appeals court and are still being challenged. Throwing money at this issue or debating it in court or Congress will not settle the fundamental problem that led to the abortion war. Americans are going to have to decide whether human life is special or not.

We are a small step from deciding that any human life that is costly, inconvenient, or dysfunctional can be legally terminated. We recall Peter Singer’s suggestion that severely mentally ill people, life-sentenced criminals, seniors who cannot manage their own affairs, and mentally challenged people unable to do productive work should all be euthanized. That would save massive amounts of money and eliminate prisons, nursing homes, and hospice facilities. Singer is an Australian moral philosopher, currently the Ira W. DeCamp Professor of Bioethics at Princeton University.

The Bible has fundamental answers to the abortion war:

All humans are of infinite value, and their bodies are the dwelling place of God’s Spirit. (See Matthew 5:44-48 and 1 Corinthians 3:16.)
Sex is a designed creation of God to provide a unique bond between a man and a woman in a committed relationship. It is not a recreational device to be used in any way one chooses. (See Matthew 19:4-6 and I Corinthians 6:15-18)
Humans are uniquely endowed with the capacity to love (agape) all other humans and to consider ALL humans to be of extraordinary worth. (See 1 John 4:7-11.)

As long as we make sex a commercial commodity and use human life as a tool to promote a political agenda or raise money, the abortion war will continue. Science and technology can offer solutions to prevent unwanted pregnancies without the wholesale use of abortion as a method of birth control. But the real solution is beyond that.

As faith in God and acceptance of the Bible as a guide for life decline, we can expect the intensity of the abortion war to increase. However, Christians can set an example, teach biblical moral principles, and address the collateral damage. However, looking the other way as these issues swirl around us does not help the situation.

References: USA Today Network for 12/5/2022, Planned Parenthood 2021 annual report, Alliance Defending Freedom Newsletter for 12/8/22.

December 14, 2022December 13, 2022

Utah Lighthouse Ministry Closing

In 1959 Jerald and Sandra Tanner began the Utah Lighthouse Ministry to help people struggling with Mormonism. The Tanners had come out of Mormonism and saw the conflicts between Mormon Church (LDS) teaching and the Bible. They wanted to help others by presenting accurate historical data and explanations of current Mormon practices.

The Tanners have published a periodical called the Salt Lake City Messenger for years. In the December 2022 issue, Sandra Tanner announced that effective March 1, 2023, she will retire, and the ministry will cease to exist. Jerald passed away in 2006.

The Tanners also operate a bookstore with literally hundreds of hard-to-find titles on the Mormon Church and books on other subjects indirectly related to Mormonism. We have used materials from the Tanners when faced with apologetic issues concerning LDS.

You can find various resources on the Utah Lighthouse Ministry’s website http://utlm.org/. For a list of book titles, go to http://utlm.org/navbooklist.htm. Starting February 1, 2023, they will have a closeout sale on all books. You can see a bibliography of materials published by the Tanners at http://utlm.org/onlineresources/pdf/tannerbibliography.pdf. They have online books available at this link http://utlm.org/navonlinebooks.htm. Also, you can purchase digital books at http://utlm.org/booklist/digitalbooks.htm.

Mormonism is a dangerous cult with a horrible history. The Tanners and Utah Lighthouse Ministry have provided a unique source of information on LDS teachings and practices throughout the years.

The mailing address is Utah Lighthouse Ministry, PO Box 1884, Salt Lake City, Utah 84110-1884.

December 13, 2022December 12, 2022

How Fast Are You Moving?

If I asked, “How fast are you moving?” you might reply that you are sitting still. However, don’t forget that you are sitting on a planet that is spinning on its axis. A fixed observer in space would say that you are moving with the planet’s rotation at up to 1000 miles per hour if you are close to the equator. At the same time, Earth is revolving around the Sun at roughly 66,000 miles per hour. The Sun is one of 100 billion stars rotating around a black hole at the core of the Milky Way galaxy at approximately 400,000 miles per hour. Meanwhile, the galaxy is moving through space at around 2,200,000 miles per hour. So, how fast are you moving when viewed from a fixed point in space?

The amazing thing about the creation is that each of these numbers is critical for our survival. The spin of the Earth on its axis distributes heat in a way that we are not frozen or burned up. The revolution around the Sun keeps us from being drawn into the Sun or slung into outer space and frozen. The movement of the Sun around the galactic core prevents the black hole at the center of our galaxy from sucking in the entire solar system and destroying it. The galaxy’s movement through space prevents it from being absorbed by another galaxy. The speeds are critically fine-tuned because there is no tolerance for error.

As astronomers look at other solar systems and galaxies, they see the speeds that allow us to exist are not that common in space. The simple statement of Psalms 19 that “the heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above shows His handiwork” reminds us that we are not the product of an accident. The more we learn about the cosmos, the more obvious it becomes that our existence is a product of intelligent design.

The psalmist also reminds us of the astonishing fact that the Creator cares about us. “When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and stars which you have ordained, what is man, that you are mindful of him …” (Psalms 8:3-4). So how fast are you moving right now? Fast enough to exist and to know that there is a reason for that existence. Read Job 1 and 2 and Ephesians 3:9-11 and 6:12 to learn more about that reason.

December 9, 2022December 7, 2022

Alcohol Consumption During Pregnancy

The most destructive recreational drug on the planet is alcohol. The consequences of alcohol consumption are more than tragic accidents. New research on alcohol consumption during pregnancy indicates that the damage of alcohol is more pervasive than anyone believed ten years ago.

Researchers at the University of Vienna have revealed their fetal development studies showing that even one glass of wine a week by the mother can significantly reduce her baby’s brain development. The major damage was in the right superior temporal sulcus. That region of the brain involves social cognition and language development.

As the world moves toward acceptance of marijuana as a recreational drug, we can expect to see more problems with the development of children. As the adoptive parent of a child whose biological mother had not used good judgment during her pregnancy, I know the problems caused by alcohol consumption during pregnancy.

With careless environmental pollution and recreational drugs, having a healthy baby is more of a challenge than ever before. When our son was diagnosed with numerous congenital problems, some people told us it was God’s doing. We can’t expect God to constantly be undoing what we have done to ourselves, both individually and collectively.

Reference: newkerala.com