Dr. Patrick Briney, Testimonies
Scientist Believes the Bible
Prior to becoming a Christian in 1977, I searched in vain for God and concluded that God was unknowable.
As a child, I was taught about Jesus Christ, but, in high school, I questioned whether God existed. If God did exist, I wanted to know Him and to know what He expected of me. However, answers to my questions were not satisfying, and I became disillusioned with all religion. I pursued the new age philosophy and sought for answers to life’s questions in science and human reason. I abandoned my search for God. Fortunately, God did not abandon me and patiently brought people into my life to lead me to Himself.
The turning point in my life began when my girlfriend called to tell me that she had become a Christian. I asked her what she meant, and she gave me the phone number of a man who taught Bible studies at the college I attended. One thing led to another until I was involved in a couple of Bible studies getting many of my questions answered. Eventually, I became convinced of God’s existence, of divine creation, and of Jesus Christ’s promise of salvation. I learned what it meant to trust Jesus Christ, and I discovered how I could be absolutely certain about going to heaven.
Most of my questions about God, Jesus Christ, and the Bible had been satisfactorily answered, but, most importantly, I knew that if I died at that time, I would not go to heaven. I knew that because of sin I would be judged guilty of violating God’s will. I was destined for the fires of hell. I wanted God’s gift of eternal life and the experience of knowing Him.
I’ll never forget the night I accepted God’s gift of eternal life. I experienced an intense awareness of my unworthiness before God, and I knew I was guilty of doing things He did not approve of. I confessed to Him my guilt and accepted His forgiveness. I surrendered my life to Him unconditionally and trusted in His promise to give me eternal life. During my prayer, I experienced peace and an absolute knowledge that God had given me eternal life. It was so easy. I just surrendered my will to Him and trusted in Him to save me. I know now with one hundred percent certainty that when I die, I will spend eternity in heaven because I have one hundred percent confidence in His promise and ability.
Since that night, I have devoted my life to serving Christ. I live by the authority of His Word and His teachings because I have personally experienced His truths and have witnessed that His will is indeed good for everyone. Jesus Christ has given me purpose, goals, answers, and experiences that fulfill my life. There is no greater experience than knowing God as my Savior and friend.
I encourage you to find out more about Jesus Christ because there are satisfying answers to your questions. In the Bible, God invites you to test Him. He says in Isaiah 1:18 to come and reason with Him. He wants you to know Him and to have eternal life too. He wants you to personally experience Him in your life just as I have.
I would like to talk to you about Jesus Christ, the Bible, and eternal life. Contact me, and let’s talk about your questions and your eternal destiny.
Atheist No More
I am a converted atheist. I went through the stages of believing in God then wondering if there was a God then not believing in Him, then wondering again, and finally believing in Him.
My personal journey is like many others, and perhaps like yours, a search for answers and information so I could make an intelligent decision. It was my fear that I would accept something that was not true. Like anybody else, I do not want to be superstitious or gullible. I thought long and hard about this problem, and finally settled the issue.
I found myself at least admitting that there are good reasons not to doubt God’s existence. In fact, being honest, I had to admit that it was much more reasonable to believe in God than to deny Him. And the more I study the subject, the more empirically obvious it becomes that there must be a God. The first law of thermodynamics says that energy cannot be created naturally. Yet, atheists propose that, out of nothing, a singularity appeared from which came all that exits in the universe. This is not rational! The second law of thermodynamics makes it impossible for the universe to have always existed. And the law of biogenesis states that living cells must naturally come from living cells. But atheists propose living cells came from lifeless molecules, which is contrary to the science and experiences of today! These three laws of science force a rational person to conclude that there must be a God. The universe and living cells could not begin without God! The atheist position is irrational, incoherent, and intellectually dumbfounding.
But what finally pushed me over the edge was prayer, which led to a personal experience with God. I know God. I cannot prove to you my personal experience with God. But you cannot disprove my experience nor deny me my experience. The realness of my experience with God is not determined by my ability to prove it to someone else. My experience is real and true regardless of whether others believe it or see it.
For me, the empirical evidence is convincing, and satisfactorily removes the excuses not to believe in God. It is apparent to me that what really does not exist are rational arguments against God’s existence.
Empiricism continues to affirm what I already know to be true and presents a convincing case for others to investigate the certainty of what I and most of humanity know to be true.
From my vantage point, God wants to prove Himself to you, one on one. He reserves the personal experience of proof, between you and Him, on the basis of faith. I am not talking about a blind leap of faith. I am talking about the Biblical faith of evidence that draws you and assures you that you can trust God. I am solid in my belief intellectually, empirically, and spiritually by faith that God does exist.
God wants you to know Him. He wants to confirm this in your heart by the evidence of faith. There are no good excuses to deny Him. As the Spirit of God tugs at your heart to give in to Him, do not resist. Instead talk to God and listen to Him. Ask Him to convince you and to help you overcome the fear of yielding to Him. I did without regret. It was the best thing I ever did, and I did not have to sacrifice reason. In fact God invites you saying, “Come, let us reason….” God is reasonable. But you can know God only through Jesus Christ. If you have questions that I can help you with, just contact me. There are answers for skeptics.
Cancer: Two Time Survivor
When the doctor mentioned the word cancer, I was mentally numb. Could it be true? A swirling tug-of-war of questions and answers raced through my mind as I began to adjust to the news. My first daughter had just been born, and my life was so wonderfully full and active. Cancer? Could it be true? Could death be so near? Was death really staring me in the face?
Ten months earlier I developed a bad sinus infection that would not quit. A nagging little cough developed, and then four months later, I began experiencing cycles of sweats and chills at night. I burrowed under blankets when the chills struck, and then soaked the blankets and bed with sweat late in the night. For the next six months, doctors treated me for a variety of infections. I was catching every cold and illness that people around me were suffering from. The cycles of sweats and chills occurred once a month and gradually increased to once a week, but I seemed to recover after taking medicine each time. Little did I or the doctors know that the cause of my colds and sinus infection was much more insidious.
On a cold, snowy day that shut down businesses for the day, I was rubbing a sore muscle in my shoulder when my thumb hit a big bump on my neck. I hurried to the mirror to see what was on my neck. I pulled my collar back and could hardly believe my eyes. It looked like a tennis ball under the skin. I’ll never forget the doctor’s surprised response saying, ‘Now that’s a bump!’ A week and several doctors later, I was diagnosed with Hodgkins lymphoma stage 4B. Usually this cancer is caught at the early stages, but in my case, it was hidden under the sternum in my chest. By the time swollen lymph nodes were visible, cancer cells had escaped my lymph system, filled my bones, and invaded the rest of my body. Chemotherapy was my only option.
I experienced first hand the value of good relationships and friendships. Family, friends, and my church were tremendously helpful. But the most important help I received was from God Himself. He gave my wife and I peace of mind that was truly incredible, and with the exception of two days every other week, our lives were more normal than not. The chemotherapy appeared to work, and I was declared cancer free. I had conquered cancer and defied death! Or so I thought. Little did I know that resistant cancer cells were already beginning their come back.
The second time around was not so easy. I was five years older and already weakened by the first round of chemotherapy. I was treated with maximum strength chemo drugs that sapped me of strength and health. Drugs, which were experimental at the time, were used to boost my recovery and keep me alive so I could continue treatments. Those were eight miserable months of unusual pains and exhaustion. I was a living toxic waste dump. Again, family, friends, and my church were there to help. I felt blessed. In fact, some of the most precious and blessed times of my life occurred at this time.
How can that be? It seems unnatural to feel so blessed in the midst of such a trial. And I suppose it is unnatural. I was facing death, I felt like a walking dead man, and I looked like a walking dead man. But I was ready to face death, and I had nothing to fear. My only concerns came from thoughts of leaving my two daughters and wife on their own. But death itself brought no fear. To tell you the truth, the thought of death brought peace to my soul. Why?
I am ready to face death because Jesus Christ is my friend, and He has conquered death, hell, and the grave. He has given to me life; not just life, but eternal life. I have a home in heaven waiting for me. I know what the apostle meant when he said, For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain (Philippians 1:21). How do I know I’m ready? How can I be so sure?
There is no secret to knowing. The Bible says, He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life. These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God. (1Jo. 5:12-13). I have Jesus Christ in my life, and I know by the promise of God’s Word that I have eternal life.
You can have eternal life too. The Bible
assures you that “the Lord is not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance” (2 Peter 3:9), and affirms His desire saying, “For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour; Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth” (1 Timothy 2:4-5).
The most famous Bible verse of all tells you how to prepare for death. John 3:16 says, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”
I am a survivor! I have survived two battles with cancer and other near death experiences, and undoubtedly there will be more. But you will face mortal battles as well. And one day, you will lose one of those battles. Everyone does and must. You will die. That is certain. But will you die in peace or in pain? Are you ready to face death?
If you would like to find out more about preparing for death or how to live life to its fullest, I will glad to share with you how you too can have eternal life with Jesus Christ.
