He Lit a Cigarette!

What may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.
Romans 1:19,20

He lit a cigarette! He actually stepped out of church, pulled a stick out of his pocket and put it to his mouth, the end glowing in the dim light of dusk.

His name is Michele (pronounced ‘k’ and not ‘sh’) and I met him this evening. An Italian with dark hair and fine looks, his ready smile and requisite lilting accent reminded me so much of Friends’ Joey Tribbiani that I had to suppress a chuckle. We were in Church for a weekly Bible study and happened to sit at the same table. As we interacted after the session I learned that he was indeed a Catholic and was attending only his second Bible study ever. As expected, we had different views over certain matters but I could see that God was working a wonder in the heart of this young man.

He had not always believed in God. Having been born into a religious family he rebelled early on and went his own way. He had comforted himself in philosophy and agnostic thought, not wanting to confront the reality of God that was always gnawing at his spirit, demanding a response. But thankfully he had come to that point in his life where he had to face up to that most important question: “What if there is a God?” The logic taught by Pasquale (follow the link below to read about it*) seemed to have helped him make up his mind - “If there’s no God and I have believed, I lose next to nothing; If there is a God and I have not believed, I lose ... everything.”

Finally Mike made the choice to believe and it changed everything. As we spoke it was so easy to see the joy and peace that is his today and the love he has for God and His word. He is obviously well read, spending time in Luther and Calvin as he tried grappled with the issues brought up by the protestant reformation and the implications for his own faith. “There are few real atheists,” he said to me. “Most people actually do not know if there is a God - they are agnostic. They are afraid of confronting the possibility because then they will have to make an uncomfortable decision. Very few will say with conviction that there is no God.”

Recently I have been burdened by the way people have rejected the thought of God as though the very idea was a primitive concept. As I talked with a friend a couple of nights back it was sad to see the burden she carries for her friends and classmates who utterly refuse to consider the truth of God’s existence. “They will not even accept that there is a God,” she cried, “how in the world will we even get to talk about Jesus?” I do not know how it will end for all these people who burden us. But one thing that gladdens my heart is that people are coming to God. I have seen it very recently in the most vivid ways that God is still in the business of changing lives.

As we walked to the tube station Michele turned to me and gestured with his cigarette. “This is a big sin for you, isn’t it?” I truly did not expect the question but at that moment I knew that all my prejudices were not important. What matters most to God is that souls are saved. He does demand total surrender but we are all in the process aren’t we?

He finally put out the light but as we turned to go underground we heard someone yelling and running after us. We turned to see a beautiful young lady in stilettos running our way as though the hordes of hell were in hot pursuit. “Please help me,” she screamed, “I’m desparate!” We waited for her to reach us and as she stopped she pulled out a stick. “Please do you have a light?”

With love, Doosuur.

*I take no responsibility for the content of this webpage and cannot guarantee that it will remain appropriate. http://article.nationalreview.com/?q=MDc1MjI4MjkwMzBhZWJmZTU2ZjBhY2JlMTQyODUwZDQ=