How do you know there is a God?

Ravi Zacharias on How do you know there is a God?

A 3min. video with some good answers!

Here's a Love Letter from God to all of us.
All of the verses quoted below are from the Bible.

You may not know me, but I know everything about you. Psalm 139:1 I know when you sit down and when you rise up. Psalm 139:2 I am familiar with all your ways. Psalm 139:3 Even the very hairs on your head are numbered. Matthew 10:29-31 For you were made in my image. Genesis 1:27 In me you live and move and have your being. Acts 17:28 For you are my offspring. Acts 17:28 I knew you even before you were conceived. Jeremiah 1:4-5 I chose you when I planned creation. Ephesians 1:11-12 You were not a mistake, for all your days are written in my book. Psalm 139:15-16 I determined the exact time of your birth and where you would live. Acts 17:26 You are fearfully and wonderfully made. Psalm 139:14 I knit you together in your mother's womb. Psalm 139:13 And brought you forth on the day you were born. Psalm 71:6 I have been misrepresented by those who don't know me. John 8:41-44 I am not distant and angry, but am the complete expression of love. 1 John 4:16 And it is my desire to lavish my love on you. 1 John 3:1 Simply because you are my child and I am your Father. 1 John 3:1 I offer you more than your earthly father ever could. Matthew 7:11 For I am the perfect father. Matthew 5:48 Every good gift that you receive comes from my hand. James 1:17 For I am your provider and I meet all your needs. Matthew 6:31-33 My plan for your future has always been filled with hope. Jeremiah 29:11 Because I love you with an everlasting love. Jeremiah 31:3 My thoughts toward you are countless as the sand on the seashore. Psalms 139:17-18 And I rejoice over you with singing. Zephaniah 3:17 I will never stop doing good to you. Jeremiah 32:40 For you are my treasured possession. Exodus 19:5 I desire to establish you with all my heart and all my soul. Jeremiah 32:41 And I want to show you great and marvelous things. Jeremiah 33:3 If you seek me with all your heart, you will find me. Deuteronomy 4:29 Delight in me and I will give you the desires of your heart. Psalm 37:4 For it is I who gave you those desires. Philippians 2:13 I am able to do more for you than you could possibly imagine. Ephesians 3:20 For I am your greatest encourager. 2 Thessalonians 2:16-17 I am also the Father who comforts you in all your troubles. 2 Corinthians 1:3-4 When you are brokenhearted, I am close to you. Psalm 34:18 As a shepherd carries a lamb, I have carried you close to my heart. Isaiah 40:11 One day I will wipe away every tear from your eyes. Revelation 21:3-4 And I'll take away all the pain you have suffered on this earth. Revelation 21:3-4 I am your Father, and I love you even as I love my son, Jesus. John 17:23 For in Jesus, my love for you is revealed. John 17:26 He is the exact representation of my being. Hebrews 1:3 He came to demonstrate that I am for you, not against you. Romans 8:31 And to tell you that I am not counting your sins. 2 Corinthians 5:18-19 Jesus died so that you and I could be reconciled. 2 Corinthians 5:18-19 His death was the ultimate expression of my love for you. 1 John 4:10 I gave up everything I loved that I might gain your love. Romans 8:31-32 If you receive the gift of my son Jesus, you receive me. 1 John 2:23 And nothing will ever separate you from my love again. Romans 8:38-39 Come home and I'll throw the biggest party heaven has ever seen. Luke 15:7 I have always been Father, and will always be Father. Ephesians 3:14-15 My question is…Will you be my child? John 1:12-13 I am waiting for you. Luke 15:11-32 Love, Your Dad. ... TO DOWNLOAD/PRINT FREE FATHER'S LOVE LETTER GREETING CARDS CLICK HERE ... PERMISSION TO COPY: The printed version of Father's Love Letter can be copied and used for free distribution providing the following copyright information is displayed... 'Father's Love Letter used by permission Father Heart Communications Copyright 1999-2006 www.FathersLoveLetter.com

Visions, Voices and life saving miracles.

Dharam Prakash Sharma: 

A well-known film star, a prominent business executive and a member of the Indian Parliament who worked with Indira Gandhi. He hear's A Mysterious Voice.

http://www.jeevanmarg.com/testimonies/testimony-of-dharam-prakash-sharma/

Johnny Lever talking about his life: 

Can fame and money give you rest and peace? Watch this testimony of Johnny lever, a life from rags to riches, from the point of suicide to a successful life. An amazing realization of God and His power to provide health, happiness and peace.

Actress Nagma 
Here is the lady who has seen it all(The so called worldly pleasures) yet leaves every thing behind and proclaims Jesus is the source of her happiness

Jayasudha's vision and a life saving miracle.

Here's an interesting video that I came across recently..

and Click here to read a rediff interview where she talks about this life saving miracle and the vision. On this interview page, just scroll down to the sub-topic "What is God to you?"

Then sit back and think for a minute, about what it means to you.
Do you find it intriguing? or will you simply shrug it off as nothing.

Click here to put that thought in a Scriptural context and see what you make of it.

Quoted from the above link..

"Miracles, it is said, are contrary to experience. Of course they are contrary to our experience, but that does not prove that they were contrary to the experience of those who witnessed them.

We believe a thousand facts, both of history and of science, that are contrary to our experience, but we believe them on the ground of competent testimony."


Raja Abel (Telugu Actor)


Short Telugu Version http://homeofjesus.org/videos/watch_video.php?v=5X56WXW847K8


(A message from telugu actor Raja from 2004 movie Anand)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raja_Abel

All parts: Part-1   Part-2   Part-3   Part-4

What is Truth?

How do we really know what is true?

Following are a couple of videos that answer this in a concise way.

The Science of God - Part 1

Although the whole video is very interesting, you can FFWD to something that 'you' might find interesting using the time stamps below. Just hit play and then move the vid.slide-bar to the desired time. I've highlighted my favorites in red text.

Time:
00:31 How do we really know what is true?
04:05 The truth about 'Da vinci Code'
13:08 Epistemology or Study of knowledge in terms of its scope and its limits
13:40 Concept of Boundaries of Reality
17:20 Cosmic issues (infinity)
21:40 Information & Entropy; Imputed concepts of Randomness and Infinity
24:20 The 3 laws of Thermodynamics
27:05 The "Big Bang" Speculations
30:10 Properties of Space (Zero point energy, Permittivity. Permeability, Intrinsic impedence, Velocity of Light)
31:03 "Zero-Point" Energy (Very Interesting! A MUST SEE)
32:10 Hyperdimensions (Spaces of more than 3 dimensions)
34:15 Dimensions of "Reality" (Only 4 of 10 being mesurable)
40:40 Indivisible Units ("Quanta")
47:21 The Four Forces (Gravity, Electromagnetic, Strong and Weak nuclear forces)
57:14 Two Dimensionless constants of the Universe: Pi, Natural log (e) in relation to the Bible -Very Interesting!

The Science of God - Part 2

Time:
02:50 Einstein's Revolution
09:35 The "Arrow" of Time.
11:30 Entropy Vs Information; Entropy in 'Scripture'
15:40 Chemical Composition of Hemoglobin -
17:00 'Impossibility' of evolutionary processes - Using Mathematical Probability
24:10 Nature of God. God outside our visible space-time dimensions.
23:35 Concept of Eternity.
25:20 Mr. & Mrs. Flat
27: 20 Bible: An inegrated message system from outside the space-time domain.
29:10 Bible's Authentication.
27:40 The Strategic Discoveries.
...
54:25 Additonal Authentication!
54:28 Are there "Hidden Messages" in the Bible?
54:45 "Equidistant Letter Sequence" explained
57:20 Examples of these hidden codes..(Very Interesting! A MUST SEE)
63:55 Pascal's Wager.

The question of Good & Evil in this world..

Be it the recent, mall shooting rampage in Omaha or the murder of two Indian students at Louisiana State University campus or other such gruesome events reported almost every day; When ever such things happen, two very 'undeniable realities of life', Evil & Death come into focus and become 'very real' and close to us at least for some time. Not a day seems to pass without being touched by this 'evil' or at least hearing of somebody else being touched by it in one form or the other; evil ranging from a mean/hurting comment by a colleague to an actual torture or murder.

Does evil have a meaning? Why do we have to put up with it? What brought evil into our lives?

Here is a very short video of an interview with Ravi Zacharias where he addresses a question "If there is a God, how can He allow evil in this world?"

Interesting! Logically... even 'evil' seems to point towards God.



Here's another venue where the same question is asked on what I believe is a college campus. Length: ~7min.




Click here for the mp3 audio from his talks (about Evil & Suffering) @ Virginia Tech. a few months after the massacre, where 32 people were killed (including a lecturer form India) and several others were wounded.

An open forum with Ravi Zacharias was held on Oct. 9th and 10th on the campus of Virginia Tech. Over the 2-night event, an estimated 7000 people heard Dr. Zacharias bring powerful messages on the hope and love that are found through Jesus Christ.

"Na Tum Jaano Na Hum..?"

This is how the lyrics go..

Kyun chalti hai pawan, kyun jhoome hai gagan,

Kyun machalta hai mann, na tum jaano na hum

Kyun aati hai bahaar, kyun lutatta hai karaar,

Kyun hota hai pyaar, na tum jaano na hum..

Yeh madhoshiyan, yeh tanhaiyan, tasaboor mein hai kis ki parchaiyan

Yeh bheega sama, umange jawan, mujhe ishq le ja raha hai kahan,

Kyun gum hai har disha, kyun hota hai nasha,

Kyun aata hai mazaa, na tum jaano na hum

Dhadakta bhi hai, tadapta bhi hai,

Yeh dil kyun achanak behakta bhi hai,

Mehekta bhi hai, chehekta bhi hai,

Yeh dil kya wafa ko samajhta bhi hai

Kyun milti hai nazar, kyun hota hai asar,

Kyun hoti hai saher, na tum jaano na hum

Kyun chalti hai pawan, kyun jhoome hai gagan,

Kyun machalta hai mann, na tum jaano na hum

Lots of questions!...about this ‘thing’ called "love" and the only answer for all of the richness of feelings and emotions that this song attempts to portray, seems to be simply... "na tum jaano na hum"

- Is that really a satisfactory final answer?

- Does it ever bother you that there might be more to this "love" than what we seem to be able to grasp and understand?

- Do these incredibly beautiful 'realities' of love and attraction between a man and a woman have any meaning or consequence, 'beyond' what we experience?

According to the scriptures this inexplicable "love & attraction" is merely an earthly representation, symbol or an analogy of God's love towards His bride. A bride ? Yes, again according to the scriptures she is a representation of all the people that have trusted Him and accepted Him as their creator and savior.

Hey..If you are wondering why I keep quoting from 'the scriptures' as the 'basis' and the 'truth' Click here to see the reasoning.

The love being referred to here is the love between a man and a woman. There are other forms of love, love between a parent and a child, brotherly love, friendly love, etc that the scripture has some rich descriptions about.

Here's the reference: Ephesians 5:31-33 (CEV) 31 As the Scriptures say, "A man leaves his father and mother to get married, and he becomes like one person with his wife." 32 This is a great mystery, but I understand it to mean Christ and his church. 33 So each husband should love his wife as much as he loves himself, and each wife should respect her husband.

(For the rest of the verses about ‘Wives and husbands’ click here )

..A beautiful song! (one of my favorites’)…truly ‘captures’ at least a part this mystery and definitely more meaningful if you understand the divine concept behind it. Believe me I never looked at it this way ..years ago when I first saw this video :o)

So, what changed?... A: finding some consistent, logically sound and most of all..'satisfactory' answers to some of the 'questions of life' that I had, even as a child...finding some thing real! for this insatiable hunger and pursuit of 'the truth'.. we all seem to have been born with...

Does it really matter to know?... A: It does.. because there exist 'answers out there'...truths that will drastically change the way you look at your life and bring genuine contentment & true satisfaction to your life...

I am well aware of the fact that, for the most of you reading this post.. the above concept might seem 'absurd', 'unrealistic', 'distant' or 'irrelevant' in our daily lives... but have you every tried to understand the meaning or significance of the other 'known facts' and ask yourself the questions like..

1.What is the meaning of this life ? 2. Why is there evil in this world? 2. How can we know God exists? or about more physical things like... 4. How can we be certain that the sun will come up tomorrow? 5. How come no other planets in our solar system seem to have any life forms (not even at a microscopic level) while on the other hand our planet seems to be incredibly 'crammed' with 'life' down to the microscopic level? 6. Its a known scientific fact that our earth is simply a 'speck of dust' in comparison to the grand scale of the current 'known universe', so does it have any significance in this universe?..if yes what is it?

There is more to life than simply 'surviving'.. I hope you start looking for answers to some of these questions...because if/when you do find those answers, the 'true meaning' of "love" and other such fundamentals of life will come into a sharp focus too!

More scriptural references to love (in general).

Faith, Hope and Love. But the greatest of these three is love.

1 Cor 13

What if I could speak all languages of humans and of angels? If I did not love others, I would be nothing more than a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal.

What if I could prophesy and understand all secrets and all knowledge? And what if I had faith that moved mountains? I would be nothing, unless I loved others.

What if I gave away all that I owned and let myself be burned alive? I would gain nothing, unless I loved others.

Love is kind and patient, never jealous, boastful, proud, or rude.

Love isn't selfish or quick tempered. It doesn't keep a record of wrongs that others do.

Love rejoices in the truth, but not in evil.

Love is always supportive, loyal, hopeful, and trusting.

Love never fails!

Everyone who prophesies will stop, and unknown languages will no longer be spoken. All that we know will be forgotten.

We don't know everything, and our prophecies are not complete. But what is perfect will someday appear, and what isn't perfect will then disappear.

When we were children, we thought and reasoned as children do. But when we grew up, we quit our childish ways.

Now all we can see of God is like a cloudy picture in a mirror. Later we will see him face to face. We don't know everything, but then we will, just as God completely understands us.

For now there are faith, hope, and love. But of these three, the greatest is love.

Finally, Here are a few other of my fav.videos (mostly from 80s & 90s) with the same theme love.form: between a man and a woman. The point being, this is just 'one form' of this incredible reality.

"Pehla Nasha"

"Chup Gaye Sare Tare"

"Nahin Saamne"

"Ghar Se Nikalte hi"

"Arey rey"