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Exceptional piece. Highly recommended!

- kunjulwa willie (24 days ago)

Lee Strobel

Lee Strobel Lee Strobel (Lee Patrick Strobel) is a former American investigative journalist and a Christian Author who has written several books, including four which received ECPA (Evangelical Christian Publishers Association) Christian Book Awards (1994, 1999, 2001, 2005) and a series which addresses challenges to the veracity of Christianity. He is a former host of the television program called Faith Under Fire on PAX TV and he runs a video apologetic web site. Lee Strobel Age He was born on January 25, 1952 in Arlington Heights, Illinois, U.S. Lee Strobel Family | Chicago Tribune Less information has been revealed about his father, mother and siblings if he has any. He attended the University of Missouri where he received a Journalism degree. He later earned his Masters of Studies in Law degree from Yale Law School. He became a journalist for the Chicago Tribune and other newspapers for 14 years. The UPI Illinois Editors Association newspaper award program gave him a first place for public service (the Len H. Small Memorial award) for his coverage of the Pinto crash trial of Ford Motor in Winamac, Indiana in 1980. Later, he became the assistant managing editor of the Daily Herald, before leaving journalism in 1987. Lee Strobel Wife | Daughter He married Leslie Strobel and they are blessed with two children; a son called Kyle who is an an Assistant Professor of Spiritual Theology and Formation at the Talbot School of Theology and a daughter called Alison who is a novelist. Lee Strobel Church He was an atheist when he began investigating the Biblical claims about Christ after his wife’s conversion. Prompted by the results of his investigation, he became a Christian on November 8, 1981. He was a teaching pastor of Willow Creek Community Church in South Barrington, Illinois, from 1987 to 2000, before shifting his focus to writing and producing his TV show, Faith Under Fire. He later was awarded an honorary doctoral degree by Southern Evangelical Seminary in recognition of his contributions to Christian apologetics in 2007. Lee Strobel Books He has written several books just to list a few. 1998 – The Case for Christ: A Journalist’s Personal Investigation of the Evidence for Jesus 2000 – The Case for Faith: A Journalist Investigates the Toughest Objections to Christianity 2004 – The Case for a Creator 2005 – The Case for Christmas: A Journalist Investigates the Identity of the Child in the Manger 2007 – The Case for the Real Jesus 2013 – The Case for Grace: A Journalist Explores the Evidence of Transformed Lives 2014 – The Case for Christianity Answer Book 2015 – The Case for Hope: Looking Ahead with Courage and Confidence 2018 – The Case for Miracles: A Journalist Investigates Evidence for the Supernatural Lee Strobel Net Worth From his work as a former investigative journalist and from his work as a Christian apologetic author, he has gained a great fortune. Besides that, he lives with his wife in his home that he bought. He has an estimated net worth of $8 million. Lee Strobel Movie His movies include; 2004 – Jesus: Fact or Fiction. 2007 – Jesus: The Great Debate. 2017 – The Case for Christ Lee Strobel The Case For Christ The Case For Christ is one of the books that Lee has written. This book summarizes Lee’s interviews with thirteen evangelical Christian scholars—Craig Blomberg, Bruce Metzger, Edwin Yamauchi, John McRay, Gregory Boyd, Ben Witherington III, Gary Collins, D. A. Carson, Louis Lapides, Alexander Metherell, William Lane Craig, Gary Habermas, and J. P. Moreland—in which they defend their views regarding the historical reliability of the New Testament. His personal encounters with these scholars and their beliefs led to the 2017 film of the same name. Lee Strobel The Case For Miracles The Case for Miracles: A Journalist Investigates Evidence for the Supernatural is one of the books that he has written. This book starts with an unlikely interview in which America’s foremost skeptic builds a seemingly persuasive case against the miraculous. But then Strobel travels the country to quiz scholars to see whether they can offer solid answers to atheist objections. Along the way, he encounters astounding accounts of healings and other phenomena that simply cannot be explained away by naturalistic causes. The book features the results of exclusive new scientific polling that shows miracle accounts are much more common than people think. Lee Strobel Testimony This is a summary of the detailed transcript of his testimony; For most of my life I was an atheist. I thought the idea of an all-loving, all-powerful creator of the universe–I thought it was stupid. I mean, my background is in journalism and law. I tend to be a skeptical person. I was the legal editor of the Chicago Tribune. So I needed evidence before I’d believe anything. One day my wife came up to me–she’d been agnostic–and she said after a period of spiritual investigation she had decided to become a follower of Jesus Christ. And I thought, you know, this is the worst possible news I could get. I thought she was going to turn into some sexually repressed prude who was going to spend all her time serving the poor in skid row somewhere. I thought this was the end of our marriage. But in the ensuing months, I saw positive changes in her values, in her character, in the way she related to me and the children. It was winsome; and it was attractive; and it made me want to check things out. So I went to church one day, ah, mainly to see if I could get her out of this cult that she had gotten involved in. But I heard the message of Jesus articulated for the first time in a way that I could understand it. That forgiveness is a free gift, and that Jesus Christ died for our sins, that we might spend eternity with Him. And I walked out saying–I was still an atheist–but also saying, “If this is true, this has huge implications for my life.” And so I used my journalism training and legal training to begin an investigation into whether there was any credibility to Christianity or to any other world faith system for that matter. Lee Strobel The Case For Easter The Case for Easter: A Journalist Investigates the Evidence for the Resurrection is one of his books that answers the following questions. Did Jesus of Nazareth really rise from the dead?Of the many world religions, only one claims that its founder returned from the grave. The resurrection of Jesus Christ is the very cornerstone of Christianity. But a dead man coming back to life? In our sophisticated age, when myth has given way to science, who can take such a claim seriously? Some argue that Jesus never died on the cross. Conflicting accounts make the empty tomb seem suspect. And post-crucifixion sightings of Jesus have been explained in psychological terms.How credible is the evidence for—and against—the resurrection? and many others. Lee Strobel Quotes “Only in a world where faith is difficult can faith exist.” “If your friend is sick and dying, the most important thing he wants is not an explanation; he wants you to sit with him. He’s terrified of being alone more than anything else. So, God has not left us alone.” “Faith is only as good as the one in whom it’s invested.” “To be honest, I didn’t want to believe that Christianity could radically transform someone’s character and values. It was much easier to raise doubts and manufacture outrageous objections that to consider the possibility that God actually could trigger a revolutionary turn-around in such a depraved and degenerate life.” “Abruptly, Templeton cut short his thoughts. There was a brief pause, almost as if he was uncertain whether he should continue. ‘Uh … but … no,’ he said slowly, ‘he’s the most …’ He stopped, then started again. ‘In my view,’ he declared, ‘he is the most important human being who ever existed.’ That’s when Templeton uttered the words I neer expected to hear from him. ‘ And if I may put it this way,’ he said in a voice that began to crack, ‘I … miss … him!’ With that tears flooded his eyes. He turned his head and looked downward, raising his left hand to shield his face from me. His shoulders bobbed as he wept.” Lee Strobel Website His website is leestrobel.com

lord, all i have is yours

Jesus’s encounter with the rich young man has always unsettled me. I’m an American. I’m as middle-class as Americans go, which means I live in a level of affluence and abundance unknown by most of my co-inhabitants of this world today, and by a far, far lower percentage of people in history. In global and historical terms, I am that man. The most disturbing thing about the young man is that he seemed so familiar with his affluence-shaped religious and cultural assumptions that he didn’t realize how out of touch with spiritual reality he was. I doubt that many around him discerned how out of touch he was. From the very brief glimpses of him we catch in the synoptics, and by Jesus’s response to him in Mark’s account, this man doesn’t seem to match the  arrogant rich oppressor  we envision when we read James 5:4–6. Those around him might have assumed his prosperity was God’s affirmative blessing. After all, this man was  spiritually  earnest — running to Jesus and kneeling before him to ask him if there was more he needed to do to be saved (Mark 10:17). He had  all the appearance of piety  — having kept (or believed he did) the commandments Jesus listed since he was young (Mark 10:19–20). And he was  sincere  — Mark records that “Jesus, looking at him, loved him” (Mark 10:21). He was all these things, yet he lacked the kind of faith that saves. Spiritually earnest, sincere, apparently pious — perhaps more than most around him. Isn’t that what faith looks like? No, not necessarily. Faith looks like  trusting . And when it comes to what we really believe, trusting looks like  treasuring . For when it’s all on the line for us, we always trust in what we truly treasure. Show Me What I Trust The most loving thing Jesus could do for this earnest, sincere young man was show him the god he trusted: “You lack one thing: go, sell all that you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me” (Mark 10:21). Then the man saw his real god, and he walked away from Jesus’s incredible invitation “sorrowful.” Why?  “He had great possessions”  (Mark 10:22). This led to Jesus’s devastating observation: And Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How difficult it will be for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God! . . . It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.” (Mark 10:23–25) When it was all on the line for the young man, he trusted his  wealth , his  possessions , more than God. His wealth was his god, and that kept him from entering the kingdom. The thing is, he didn’t see this until he really had to choose. Do you find that disconcerting? The disciples did: “Then who can be saved?” (Mark 10:26). As an affluent American living in the midst of unprecedented historical abundance, I do. I don’t trust my faith self-assessment (1 Corinthians 4:3). I can trust only God’s assessment (1 Corinthians 4:4). And since faith is really proven genuine only when it is tried (1 Peter 1:6–7; James 1:2–4; 2 Corinthians 13:5), we must be willing, like the young man, to say to Jesus, Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts! And see if there be any grievous way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting! (Psalm 139:23–24) And if Jesus doesn’t call us to leave our abundance, but to continue living faithfully in it — if we are to really trust God and not our abundance — then we need the faith to abound. Faith to Abound Paul said he had learned to be content in whatever situation he found himself: I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me. (Philippians 4:12–13) If given the choice, most of us likely would prefer to be given the faith to abound rather than the faith to be brought low. I think that’s because we aren’t fully cognizant of the dangerous nature of material prosperity. Paul meant it when he said it requires God’s strength to “face plenty.” “Abundance” (prosperity) and “need” (scarcity) are very different circumstances. They  both  require faith in order to handle them in ways that glorify God. But they demand the exercising of different sets of faith muscles. Scarcity requires faith muscles for trusting God in a place of needy desperation. Prosperity requires faith muscles for trusting God in place of bountiful material security. Exercising faith in scarcity is not easy by any means. Most of us fear scarcity more than prosperity because the threat is clearly seen. But ironically, that’s one reason it can be easier to exercise faith in scarcity than in prosperity. Because in scarcity, our need is clear and our options are typically few. We feel desperate for God to provide for us and so we are driven to seek him — to exercise our faith. But exercising faith in prosperity is different. It’s a more complex and deceptive spiritual and psychological environment. It requires that we truly trust — truly  treasure  — God when we don’t feel desperate for his provision, when we feel materially secure, when nothing external is demanding that we feel urgency. When we have lots of options that look innocuous and we can spend precious time and money on all sorts of pursuits and enjoyments. This environment is so dangerous that Jesus warns it is harder for people in it to enter God’s kingdom than for a camel to climb through the eye of a needle. Test yourself. When have you sought God most earnestly: in need or abundance? When God Is Our Option Christians have always found it harder to voluntarily give away security than to desperately plead for it. It requires different faith muscles to trust God in divesting ourselves of prosperity for his sake than to trust God to meet our scarcity for his sake. In some ways, it takes greater faith to trust God when you have other options than when he is our only option. That’s why the laborers are so few when the harvest is so plenty (Luke 10:2). Few want to face worldly need in order to experience kingdom plenty. It makes the kind of faith that saints like George Müller and Hudson Taylor exercised so remarkable. Yes, they trusted in God in scarcity. But what made this all the more remarkable was that they could have raised money in other legitimate ways to support their work and avoid many of those needy moments. But they  voluntarily  chose (which is different from being circumstantially forced) to place themselves in a position of desperation to demonstrate that God exists and rewards those who seek him (Hebrews 11:6). They, like Paul, learned the secret of facing abundance and need: fully trusting God, their Treasure. Whatever It Takes We Christians who live in abundance need to heed the story of the rich young man. We need him to unnerve us. For the whole history of the church bears witness to the general trend that the wealthier she grows, the more corrupt, indulgent, and apathetic she grows. And the less urgent over lost souls she feels. It’s harder for people in our environment to be real Christians than for camels to pass through a needle’s eye. But Jesus does not leave us without great hope. He announces, “With man [handling material abundance faithfully] is impossible, but not with God. For all things are possible with God” (Mark 10:27). So, let us run to Jesus — who has power to do what is impossible for us — kneel before him, and plead: Whatever it takes, Lord, help me to truly trust you as my greatest treasure. I would rather lose my material security and gain the kingdom than gain the world and lose my soul. All I have is yours — my life, my family, my time, my money, my possessions, my future — and I will steward them as you wish, even if it means losing them (Philippians 3:8). And I invite you to search my heart and put my faith to the test.

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