As an atheist, when I saw things like that (or other things my spirit knew to be wrong) in people who called themselves Christians, I would say to myself "if that's what a Christian is, I don't want any part of it."

Then, as a young adult in college, I met some people who really took Jesus seriously -- I could tell just in the way they carried themselves. They were strangely and positively attractive; they conducted themselves in a way that somehow my spirit knew a "real" Christian would (if Christianity was real).

These people were unusually comfortable with themselves; they were unusually honest about themselves; they had a quiet self-confidence that allowed them to stand firm against moral opposition. Yet they were not overpowering. They had a serious and geniune concern for others, in their physical and mental wellbeing as well as their spiritual. They were honest about their own weaknesses, yet they shared how they were working with God to overcome these. They exhibited these and other worthy qualities that you just cannot fake as a lifestyle. My spirit told me that these were genuine people, even if they were not perfect.

Though I didn't know it at the time, my righteousness-hungry spirit detected holiness in them. This was something I came to understand when I humbled myself to read the Bible for the first time in my life: the New Testament book of Romans deeply resonated with my mind, emotions and spirit. It answered my urgent, compelling questions of good and evil in the hearts of mankind and myself. It helped me understand the beautiful fruit I was seeing in the holiness of these new, true, Christian aquaintences. It also helped me undersand my deep depravity, and helped lead me to my surrender to Christ, and the acceptance of His pardon.

For those of you who are atheists of good-will, who come by your belief honestly, I was where you are today. Nothing, no other worldview came close to answering the deep questions about life and good & evil, and what these mean to us and mankind. I know, I looked earnestly.

Christianity was the LAST place I wanted to look because of all that I had seen and heard, both from my fellow atheists, and from people who acted like "Christians-in-name-only." I was too proud to read the Bible; what could it possibly say that would be worth hearing? I thought I had to shelf my brain to accept Christianity. I was wrong, so wrong, for so long.

If you are truly of good-will and intellectually honest, then give God a chance to reveal Himself. That's what I did, I said "God, if you really exist, and the bible really is your word, then make that real in my heart and mind. You are supposed to know how I am made, and what it will take to convince me. I have hard intellectual questions, and deep concerns! They say you have the answers. God, all I want is to know the truth. My Christian friends say that will set me free. Whether it frees me or not, I need to know the truth!"

Atheist Friend, what I am urging you to do is to simply give God an honest chance. (Search deep in your heart and you will know what I mean about an "honest chance.")

God has already paid our debt and offered us His pardon. He will move Heaven and Earth for one who sincerly seeks Him. If you want Him, He will find you, but He respects you too much to force Himself upon you.

Time is getting short; any of us could die at any moment. Give God your honest (but respectful) challenge to reveal Himself to you.

Each of us who are His, know it deep and unshakeably inside ourselves, in ways that we cannot easily explain to others, even when we harbor occasional doubts in our minds.

He is real, and we know it! Yet few of us have seen showy, overt demonstrations of God's presense. Rather, His Spirit says to ours "You are mine, and I am yours, and no one can snatch you from My hand." No amount of "wishful" thinking can turn this into a steadfast, super-natural conviction in our souls.

For the comfort of our minds and emotions, He has revealed Himself in the universe He created and in the humanly impossible ways He changes the lives of those who are His. He has also revealed Himself through the foretelling of history throughout the Bible, something you have to exist outside of time to be able to do.

I'm saying all this to tell you that when you have humbled yourself to ask for God, He will not disappoint you, though everyting in the world says you will be disappointed. If you really want truth, He will reveal much of Himself and yourself to you, and then ask: "Will you accept the pardon I offer you, the one my son Jesus died to give you?" The only "work of God," is to sincerely answer "yes" to that question.

When you do this, "scales" will fall from your eyes and you will begin to see and understand things as never before. Things that had puzzeled and troubled you will make sense. God put Eternity in all of our hearts, and you will finally start singing from the same page as God. You will be transformed into new creatures; you will be adopted into His family.

Atheist of good-will, I have written and pray in hope that you will come to Jesus on His terms. I want you to become part of the family for your sake, for our sakes, and for God's sake.