Thank you for being willing to say that.
I'll find you that reference tomorrow, but in the meantime, putting aside the Greenleaf thing, did you have some direct evidence for your beliefs that you wanted me to consider?
well i am a living testimony of my direct beliefs. I was blinded on the side of a highway by a homeless man dressed in robes, my friend was collapsed just behind me and to my left side. For 3 days we had dreams/visions that had manifestations in reality for those 3 days be it snakes, colors or harlots. My little brother, little sister and another friend were witnesses to those 3 days of visions. However I have no document evidence on that aspect.
I would talk to you about the chariot like items that were found beneath the reed sea, where giant pillars were said to be erected by ancient kings to commemorate the event, but I don't have the patience to look up all of the evidence on that. There is scientific evidence against the big bang theory (like the galaxies spinning on different axis and different directions which suggest they didn't fly away from the same explosion.) then there is the fact that the universe is accelerating in speed rather than slowing down which suggests some invisible force is pushing everything apart. There is the global record on every continent of a great flood. There is the awesome fact that Jewish documents state that Jesus was healing people, did cast out demons and his body wasn't there on the third day. (though they say it was by demons he did those things and that his disciples stole his body) which is interesting because the Romans were very strict and had provided a Roman "seal" around the entrance of the tomb. Then of course there is the fact that all of those disciples went off to there death unable to be silenced after the resurrection. Hard to do that if they knew it was a lie. You have historians like Josephus,historian Edwin Yamauchi, Tacitus, many of these guys were very unsympathetic to the "christians" but never the less they documented all of these things providing evidence of their occurrence. There is evidence in nature. For instance look at a hummingbird.
With the exception of insects, hummingbirds while in flight have the highest
metabolism of all animals, a necessity in order to support the rapid beating of their wings. Their
heart rate can reach as high as 1,260 beats per minute, a rate once measured in a
Blue-throated Hummingbird.[SUP]
[17][/SUP] They also consume more than their own weight in nectar each day, and to do so they must visit hundreds of flowers daily. Hummingbirds are continuously hours away from starving to death and are able to store just enough energy to survive overnight.
[
the giraffe
Many scientists and casual observers have been intrigued by the blood-pressure regulations in an animal with so long a neck and legs. Research has shown that the giraffe has a very large heart (13kg) and that its pumping power is three times that of a man. Most important, there is an intricate network of valves in the veins and blood vessels of the neck, which prevents the brain from being filled or emptied of blood too quickly. One highly specialised vessel near the brain acts as a sponge, slowly absorbing blood to the point where pressure warns the animal to lift its head before damage occurs. Next time you see a giraffe drinking, notice that it never keeps its head down for too long.
both of these animals had to be created exactly as they were and fully intact. Had the hummingbird not had its beak to drink the nectar-death, wing beats to hover- death, all those heart beats, death. There was no room for evolution.
Same with the giraffe, for the first time it raised its head if its heart wasn't big enough it would pass out, never able to reach branches, and if it had the heart and not the sponge in its skull when it drank it would cause brain damage. Its amazing.
There are all of the prophecies in the old testament that Jesus fulfilled 333 to be exact
Mathematically speaking, the odds of anyone fulfilling this amount of prophecy are staggering. Mathematicians put it this way:
1 person fulfilling 8 prophecies: 1 in 100,000,000,000,000,000 1 person fulfilling 48 prophecies: 1 chance in 10 to the 157[SUP]th [/SUP] power 1 person fulfilling 300+ prophecies: Only Jesus!
then there is the simple truth that the more archaeologists search through the rubble of history instead of finding things that oppose the bible, they find things that seem to support it. A very odd situation to find ourselves in so far in the advancement of technology against something written so detailed and so long ago against what many believe to be a fabrication. Remember the bible isn't vague. It is full of this person begat this person in this year of this guys reign. So when archaeologists, historians and the like find this and that and then confirm that yes this guy was king, yes this place was here, yes it had this many pillars its exciting.
here was a scientist who turned christian:
I did not always embrace these perspectives. As a graduate student in physical chemistry in the 1970s, I was an atheist, finding no reason to postulate the existence of any truths outside of mathematics, physics and chemistry. But then I went to medical school, and encountered life and death issues at the bedsides of my patients. Challenged by one of those patients, who asked "What do you believe, doctor?", I began searching for answers.
Collins: Why this scientist believes in God - CNN.com
dr. Francis Collins
there is Jim Hovind who gives great scientific evidence against evolution and for creationism
Dr. Dino - The Age Of The Earth - YouTube
I've spent enough time on here for now. I'll be back.