My Dad and What we Believe

Talking about my parents being here wouldn’t be complete without telling you about the seminar that my Dad did for us. For those of you who don’t know, my Dad is a Scientist. And if you are at all familiar with science, you know that it is hard to study it at all without running into phrases such as “...two million years ago....” My Dad got his PhD from Texas Tech, where many wonderful people work and earn degrees. However, many who are in the science department reconcile science and the Bible by saying that God started evolution. For the one who believes that God made the world- just like it says in Genesis, in 6 days-this is a bit of an obstacle to overcome. After earning his degree, my Dad started studying and looking into all the “facts” of evolution. The deeper he dug, the more problems he found with the 'science' behind evolution, and the more holes and discrepancies he found between what existed, in regard to the proof for evolution, versus what they actually have.

Since he was going to be here in Kharkov, my Dad did a mini seminar for us on the topic of Creation. We invited a good friend and wonderful translator, Alyona, from Donetsk, to translate for us. We rented a room and put out many advertisements. Though the seminar wasn’t a huge success in regards to reaching many unbelievers, (one reason maybe being the big snowstorm we had that weekend!), we did have a small group of Christians who attended and were able to benefit from the seminar.

Currently, my Dad teaches a class onEvolution versus Creation at LCU, as well as give seminars around Texas and New Mexico. He also has taught adult and teen classes over this subject periodically at his home church. (The seminars are usually at churches and can be a one day event or a weekend/half a week seminar/gospel meeting event.) The information he teaches includes such topics that deal with the flaws in carbon dating, how the eruption of Mt. St. Helen’s changed Science’s understand of how strata is laid and dated, how considering catastrophic events in looking at the history of the Earth can explain things such as the flood and the Grand Canyon, etc. In some lessons he shows how a lot of charts and sketches in scientific literature is altered or only portrays half the picture (including charts, graphs and information you read in National Geographic to textbooks) to an extent that portrays something completely different than what has actually been found. In addition, he includes a part on the incredible designs of God, talking about various animals and how they made in such a way, that absolutely points to a Creator. There is just no way evolution would have done it (like make the woodpeckers tongue go around it’s skull to the back of it’s head!). It is all amazing and eye opening information that my Dad puts into scientific language that everyone can understand.

Me, I am his daughter, and I love it! I love how my Dad is not afraid to deny, even in the scientific community, what he believes. I love how he talks about the designs of God and the evidences for Creation in all his classes at LCU, as well as whenever the subject comes up in any situation. And I love my Dad's material because it bolster my belief in God.

I have a faith in God. Faith means I don’t understand and can’t explain everything about God-and never will be able to. However, when I can see that so much of what I have seen taught about evolution isn’t true, or when I can look more deeply at the things God has created, it gives some concreteness to my faith. It is like studying the historical material that proves Jesus existed as a person in history and that there were unexplainable events around the time of his crucifixion (like earthquakes and the sun being blotted out), etc. The historical data doesn’tprove Jesus was the Son of God, but putting that knowledge together with the faith I have in God’s words as recorded in the Bible, I feel like I can be more sure of what I believe. I am not grasping blindly in the dark. This is what my Dad’s lessons do for me. He gives me something concrete to hold onto and know, to add knowledge to my faith.

Thanks Dad, for all you do to foster a stronger belief and knowledge of God and His creation in those who claim to follow Christ. Thank you for your willingness to never deny God, in any arena, or deny His power and His ability to do more than we can imagine. Thank you for not just accepting what the world throws at us, but challenging us, as Christians, to think and search for the Truth as God says it is. Thank you for the way that you shine brightly and assertively in the darkness that surrounds today's scientific community.

I encourage anyone of you who are interested in knowing more about his information to attend one of my dad’s classes or seminars. Or invite him to speak at your congregation!