My Parents Didn’t Brainwash Me
I am a Christian, because…
By Grace K. Bianco
“For we live by faith, not by sight.” Corinthians 5:7
Before I really dive into this blog, I want to make it clear that this is a summarized version of why I believe in God. This isn’t a means of proving God through scientific ways. This is simply just my OWN opinion. A lot of Christians would have varying answers. I am not speaking for everyone just me.
A lot of people from this generation have come to some weird conclusion that Christians are just brainwashed, and blindly follow a “fairytale”. I was raised Christian, but I wasn’t raised to be forced to believe. We are all freethinkers at the end of the day. My parents encouraged Christianity, and it was up to me to decide whether or not I would follow it.
Understanding God Through My Childhood Eyes
“And He said: ‘Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.’” Matthew 18:3
The question, “Why do you believe in God?”, is one that I have reflected on since I was a child. I remember being a young and naive**(scroll to bottom for explanation on wording) kid that truly believed that everyone believed in God. I was raised Christian, and even at a young age, it just made sense to me.
I saw the world around me, and thought, “Yeah, someone had to have made this.”
When I struggled with anxiety and cried for my parents, they would tell me, “God is with you wherever I go.” I thought, “Okay, at least, I have someone that I know who is always with me.”
When the discussion of death came up, I was told, “If you believe Jesus died for you, you have nothing to worry about, Grace.” I’d think about all the times I heard about Jesus’s birth and resurrection and think, “Well, of course, I believe in Him. He had to die. Wouldn’t it be mean not to?” Although my worry was strong as a child, I took comfort in Jesus dying for me. Granted, I didn't fully understand exactly how much that meant, but I figured if it was talked about so much it must mean something.
So when an old friend of mine told me in elementary school that there is no god, my world didn’t seem so black and white anymore. And that’s when I started really thinking about why I believe in God when others don’t.
My Childlike Faith and Deep Thinking
“Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.” Hebrews 11:1
If you read my book, “Party Pooper: Growing up with Anxiety”, it can be very easy to pick up on how much of a deep thinker I have been all of my life.
One of my best examples of thinking too hard is… When I was eight, I cried on her 8th birthday, because I realized the older I got, the older my loved ones got. I didn’t want to be left behind. My deep thinking hasn’t been such a great thing in circumstances like that; however, I have found it helpful when thinking about God and eternity.
Going back to what I said earlier, “It just made sense.” I would say I have kept that mentality all throughout my life. In my deepest pondering of what life and existence is, I have always been able to come to the understanding that God is who He says He is. We hear ideas from MAN all of the time. They twist words and twist the image of God. When we go back to the Bible, we are given an understanding of God straight from God, Himself.
In the Bible verse up above (Matthew 18:3), it expresses the importance of having a childlike faith. Although, I have a deeper understanding of God, my faith is still very much like it was when I was younger. He made sense to me then, and He makes even more sense to me now.
I could get into the science of why I believe. I could discuss the theology to back up my words. But those two things aren’t the REASON I believe, they are just reassurance in what I already believe.
The reason I believe in God is because I see God in everything.
I don’t need God to open up the heavens and reveal Himself to me. We are supposed to have faith in what we can’t always see perfectly. That’s what faith is all about.
However, I do believe He shows Himself to us if we look and listen hard enough.
Where I See God
“For ever since the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky. Through everything God made, they can clearly see his invisible qualities-His eternal power and divine nature. So they have no excuse for not knowing God.” Romans 1:20
I love sunsets. I believe I have always loved them, but there is one instance that I believe made me love them more.
My youngest sister, who was about four years old at the time, was out on a boat with the me and the family. She was admiring the bright pink and orange sky. She turned to my mom and asked “Who painted that?” My mom without even the slightest hesitation told her, “God did.”
My little sister saw the sky as a painting, and in a more complicated and scientific way, that’s what it is. Anytime the sky is slightly colored, I notice. All I think when I see a sky full of colors is, “He didn’t have to make this world so beautiful, and yet, He went above and beyond.”
I see God in science too.
I was homeschooled for five years, but my mom taught us about as many religions as she could. We also had to learn all about Evolution. We weren’t sheltered from science, or pretended to not notice it. In fact, even if we tried, that would have been impossible for my family to do. My dad literally has a PhD in Analytical Chemistry. So, while I am blabbing on about the beauty in this world, I understand the science behind it too.
I don’t believe science disproves God. The world is so perfectly and intricately made, and in my eyes, it absolutely proves God.
I see God when I look at my husband.
When I look at my husband, I think about how God made him, and God knew before my husband was even born that he would marry me.
My husband and I do / say the exact same thing all the time, and whenever it happens, he will say, “It’s because we are meant to be together.” We laugh, but we mean it. When I look at my husband, I am reminded of God’s promise for us. He knows who and what we need all throughout our entire life.
I see God when I look at my family who helped me get to where I am today. I see God working in the hearts of many. I see God in every good thing imaginable. I see God in every single one of my blessings. I also see God in my hardest battles, but not because He’s to blame.
I see the darkness and evil in this world, but don’t get evil mixed up with God. There’s a whole lot to say when it comes to that topic. Christian or not, we will all be tested everyday by something. That’s why I choose to believe. We don’t have to fight these battles alone. I have been through many, but every time, God equipped me and got me through them.
Conclusion
“He replied, ‘Because you have so little faith. Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.” Matthew 17:20
There’s so much to say about the God. Each topic I talked through could have been an entire blog by itself. We aren’t supposed to have all the answers, but God still gave us countless ones. Sometimes, we have to look hard, and other times, we just have to look right in front of me.
We don’t have to be perfect or live perfect lives to follow God. Even in my worst doubt and anxiety, all I need is a tiny bit of faith in God to move my mountains.
There’s beauty. There’s science. There’s comfort. There’s hope. There’s joy. There’s love.
I believe in God, because I believe He is all of those things and much more. To me, it really does just make sense. And when I die and go to heaven, I want God to know that from the time I began thinking to the end of my life… I believed that Jesus died for us to live. Not because I don’t want to be mean, but because I know with everything in me that what He says to be true is true.
*When I refer to myself as a naive child, I am referring to being naive in thinking that no one had any other beliefs. I am not calling my young self naive for being a Christian.
_______________________________
Thanks for reading!! Make sure to click that follow button for more!!
Also, check out my more personal blog newkindofliving.com ❤
My book, Party Pooper: Growing up with Anxiety, is available now on Amazon (eBook and Paperback).
