I've noticed many spiritually hungry people on these boards asking questions about wicca and witchcraft.  I have a crazy idea that I know you don't often hear from mainstream Christians:  dabble in the Holy Spirit.  The Spirit of God moves in power, so if you call on the name of Jesus Christ or the Holy Spirit you will get an answer.  I have seen many visions and heard the loving, encouraging, gentle voice of Father God by simply calling out to Him and asking Him to speak to my heart.  Christianity has often times been reduced to only knowledge but I encourage you to call out to God and expect an answer from His Holy Spirit.  God is real and His voice thunders still in our time.

Awesome post.  Thank you!

Brandon, not everyone who finds value in "Christianity" is trinitarian . . . .

Hey Bonnie,

I hadn't checked this post for a while...sorry.  Sure, there are different opinions and I am not here to condemn anyone.  The Father, Jesus, and Holy Spirit working together is a mystery beyond our understanding.  I just want to obey my Father and make disciples for His Kingdom and I know He is there to help. 

Matthew 28:19 

Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit

At the root of things, everyone is seeking the same Power/Spirit/God - call it whatever, we just have different ways of going about it and none is any "righter" or "wronger" than another.  Each to his, or her own way and let others do the same.  As the wise man said "whatever gets you through the night . . . "

Cheers, Margaret

Hey Margaret,

I believe all people are created spiritually hungry, however I do not believe all religions are the same.  There is one true God and there are many false gods.  That is the reality we live in.  The good news is God loves us and we as His followers should love this world into relationship with Him.  Sadly there are many angry, hateful, and spiteful Christians who have destroyed more than they have built.  I believe things are changing in the Church today, a new dedication to love will be the standard.  But this is where people don't understand that if I really love you I will tell you the truth about Jesus and what He has done for us on the cross.  I can not in good conscience let people live without a loving God that has wiped away their sins.  That is why I promote Jesus even though it is politically incorrect to tell anybody that what they believe is not true.

you "cannot let people live without a loving God that has wiped away their sins"  ? ?  ?   Brandon, do you realize how that sounds?

If you really love other human beings, you will NOT "promote Jesus" or tell your fellow human beings that what they believe is NOT true . . . . .

please look into the meaning of the word "proselytize" . . . . . .

P.S.    Some of the antagonism that led to all those murderous crusades in centuries past, the Spanish Inquisition, and the forcible conversion to Christianity of "pagans", and to the jihads of the present time, stems from the fact that both Christianity and Islam have a  "missionary thrust"  Matthew 28:19  and, in the case of Islam, the adjuration to destroy the "infidels"  (non-Muslims)

A wise man named Jimmy Durante once said "Why can't everybody leave everybody else the hell alone?"

Hello Bonnie,

I can not make anyone believe anything and I do not wish to force anyone into anything.  However, it is my calling to present the wonderful truth of Jesus to people I encounter in life.  I do it with love.  If someone tells me no thanks, I tell them to have a great day and then I pray for them on my own time.  I'm not interested in telling someone about Jesus after they have told me to stop.  If I present it and people want more information I give them more.  The point is I don't find it rude to present the message if it is done with love. 

I love eating good food.  If I find a great food joint then I tell other hungry people where it is and what they serve.  Same thing with Jesus.  Jesus is good food and I just want people to partake if they so desire. 

You are free to live as you wish. 

Brandon,

I admire your willingness to share Christ with others and you seem to be going about things with the right attitude.  Too many people give Christianity a bad name by trying to force it on others, judge them, and condemn them if they believe a different way. What a turn off! You have the right idea, when the opportunity is right, share it with love and a caring heart, and God will do the rest. If a person is not interested it is not our place to try to shove it down their throat and convert them, but simply share the truth of Christ no different than others sharing their beliefs. After that, we need only make ourselves available if they want more understanding.  I agree everyone deserves to know what Jesus has done for them, that He loves each one of us equally, and He offers eternal life, but it is not my desire to offend anyone in the process. Religion is a personal choice and I respect that. I also respect you for standing up for what you believe!

Thanks Gina!  I remember a pastor saying that many people share the message of love, but if you don't share the message of love IN love then you will be nothing but noise.  Love is powerful and effective, then God's Holy Spirit speaks the rest to individual hearts.

I realize this post is ancient, but why do you think that people who are spiritually exploring haven't considered Christianity?  In this cluture, it is ubiquitous.  I don't mean this as a personal criticism, I just don't see anyone who is interested in Wicca suddenly thinking "Oh, hey!  Chirtianity!  Why didn't I think of that before?"

(Just to be clear, this is intended as an honest question.  I'm trying to gain information, nothing more.)

I've seen it happen to a few people before, though, Kari.  They were raised a certain denomination of Christian and didn't realize there were other forms of Christianity or are just fed up with it.  They explore other religions and then end up finding a form of Christianity that is more fitting for them.

The other thing is that sometimes it's just not the right time for somebody.  And that really goes for any religion.  A lot of people consider different religions and end up going back to one that they had dismissed early on in their search.

I just wanted to add that one of the reasons a lot of people don't consider Christianity is exactly because they are surrounded by it.

You know, there is a forum specifically for Christians. You could go talk about Christianity there. I don't particularly care to have other people commenting on my religious beliefs (I am a witch) or calling my religion "dabbling". I don't call you a dabbler, don't call me one. I find it extremely offensive

Michelle and Kari, I was kind of thinking the same thing. I was raised Christian, Methodist. Though I attended different denominations with friends and family members. I explored different religions as I got older, before finding one that fit my beliefs. If what the OP is saying is that he feels those who have not considered Christianity should consider it, than fine. But to say that all who dabble are just missing Jesus, is not only inacurate but presumptious. Most people who later in life "dabble" in other religions, have already considered Christianity in some form. OR do look into Christianity at that time since they are spiritually searching.

Brandon, If your belief is that there is only one true God and he is found through Christ, that is a truth within your religion. I am glad you have found something that fits your spiritual beliefs. However, it doesnt make it true to everyone. I am glad to hear you dont continue to push your beliefs once others have stated they do not agree.  I too believe that it is rude to do so.

Hello Kat,

It is not about finding something that fits me, it is about finding the truth.  We are free to believe anything we want, but not all of it is true.  I can believe that a giant turtle named Alberto lives at the bottom of the ocean and is the creator of all life and will one day judge the world based on your good works toward turtles.  I think many of us can agree this is not true, so my point is we are not looking for beliefs that make us happy we are looking for the truth.  The consequence of believing something false is that I will miss the truth and die accountable for everything I have ever done.

Brandon, what do you mean by "truth"?  What makes Christianity "true" versus other religions? 

If you are asking for a definition of truth I would say truth is reality.  In other words what is really going on, what really happened?  The truth is what really happened and explains what our reality is.  I could walk around telling everybody I am the president of the United States, but it is not reality.  It is a lie.  Doesn't matter how much I believe it I am not the president of the U.S.

So what makes Christianity truth you ask and my answer is Christianity presents the truth about the world and God.  It is the true story of life.  It reveals our true purpose.  It is what really happened. God created the world, etc...

But I think you are asking/hinting for me to prove that Christianity is true.  I'm not sure you will be convinced, but I have lots of reasons for my faith: I was healed, witnessed hundreds of healings, seen visions, the Bible is the most historically supported book in history, the Bible's advice works, archeology has proven the Bible accurate numerous times, and the Spirit of God lives in me.

I'll start with this as my answer. 

 I was healed, witnessed hundreds of healings, seen visions,  and the Spirit of God lives in me.

These things happen in every other religion. 

the Bible is the most historically supported book in history, the Bible's advice works, archeology has proven the Bible accurate numerous times,

While archaeology proves that these places exist, it does not prove many of the events concerning people that are said to have happened in the Bible.  Quote from www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/ancient/archeology-hebrew-bible.html: The fact is that archeology can never prove any of the theological suppositions of the Bible. Archeologists can often tell you what happened and when and where and how and even why. No archeologists can tell anyone what it means, and most of us don't try.

*edited to fix link; apparently I can't link because for some reason the forum changes PBS to paperbackswap on the url, so I just copied and pasted the full URL, rather than making a link.

Jennifer,

While there are imitations of the Holy Spirit that can produce miraculous signs (healings, etc...) there is only One Spirit of God and every other religion does not have it.  Only through Christ can you know the God who is maker of the universe.

I find your PBS quote very funny.  A station that puts forward many programs telling us what to think about the world and politics telling me not to put any stock in the reality that archeology proves the Bible to be accurate on its historical accounts of cities is comical.  The point is that the Bible is accurate on locations and places, which lends itself to being a trustworthy historical book.  What you believe about the supernatural aspects of the Bible is different than noting that the Bible is a historically accurate book. 

I believe the supernatural aspects of the Bible because I have encountered a supernatural God in my own life.  I believe the stories about Jesus healing, not only because it is in the Bible, but because Jesus healed me through the power of the Holy Spirit.

Actually I have taken classes on the bible as history and literature.  The bible is actually not historically accurate in a lot of ways.  A lot of the stories are stories buillt in with a moral lesson, but they are not historically accurate.  It cannot be viewed as a book of history.

Who says the Bible isn't historical?  Please list some ways that the Bible is not accurate, I'd love to hear.

I also disagree Jaime.  The more we discover about history, the more we discover the Bible is more accurate (not less accurate).  You say you've taken classes, I'll assume college.  Where many professors are not only non-Christian but often anti-Christian.  IMO your 'education' has been skewed by biased teachers.

http://www.wfu.edu/~horton/r102/hc-method.html - Quote: Historical research can seldom prove the accuracy of an account, though it may sometimes reveal an inaccuracy. That leads us, to the "critical" part of the historical-critical method.

http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1817&dat=19921121&id=BzkdAAAAIBAJ&sjid=5KUEAAAAIBAJ&pg=6750,7103526 - Herod did not commit mass slaughter of infants.
http://rationalwiki.org/wiki/Evidence_for_the_Exodus - According to evidence, Exodus did not happen.
http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/2001/what-did-the-census-at-the-time-of-the-birth-of-christ-accomplish - A census did not occur during the time of Jesus' birth.

Many parts of the Bible were meant to be allegorical in the first place, which leads to parts being inaccurate.  Seeing as they were meant to be allegorical, I don't understand why it is a problem to acknowledge that fact.

I wonder if that pillar of salt that used to be Lot's wife is still around.

I wonder if the phrase "worth their salt" had anything to do with Lot's wife. 

RIght now, there are questions about the accuracy of the Bible.  In particular, Science and History seem at odds with the Bible at times.

I do believe that as we continue to learn more about Science and History, those questions will slowly diminish.

Do I have questions about part of it?  You get your life

But.. overall... I view the BIble as God's word spoken directly to me.

Back to the original topic of dabbleing.... When you find what you choose to believe, whatever it is, go ahead and get to the root of things.

I suspect there are as many dabblers in the christian church as in any other belief system.