“My parents always believed that children couldn’t understand anything about God, so they never took me to church until I was 10 or 11. But our 4-year-old keeps asking questions about God, and we wonder if we ought to begin taking him to church. What do you think?”
“If God sometimes says “no” to our prayers, then why bother to pray? I admit I have a hard time trying to figure out when to pray and when to just keep quiet — although if something looks hopeless, I really don't see any reason to pray about it.”
“Recently I've been watching some reruns of your crusades, and I'm thankful for your clear preaching. But why do you always ask people to come forward at the end of your messages? Can't people put their faith in Christ wherever they are, not just in a stadium?”
“My pets mean a lot to me, and I hate to see people neglect animals or treat them cruelly. Does the Bible say anything about how we should treat animals? God made them also, didn’t He?”
“It seems like I’m always having financial problems, and they’d all be solved if I could just win the lottery. But I haven’t won hardly anything the last few years, although I’ve prayed and prayed for God to help me win. Why won’t God hear my prayers?”
“I was just elected to serve on our church's governing board, and I have to admit I'm nervous about it. What advice would you give me? I've been a Sunday school teacher for several years (and still am), but this is new to me.”
“I read your column fairly regularly, and from time to time I notice that you urge people to learn to walk with God every day. What exactly do you mean by that? And how does it happen?”
“A friend of mine says that if we just had enough faith, then we wouldn't have any problems in our lives. Is she right? If she is, how can I get that kind of a faith?”
“A good friend who used to be in my Bible study at church is heading down the wrong road, because he's secretly involved with someone who isn't his wife. I guess I ought to say something to him but I'm afraid I'll lose his friendship. Is there any way I can get him to wake up?”
“The kindest, most thoughtful person I know says she's an atheist and doesn't even believe in God. I always thought we needed to believe in God before we'd behave like she does, but I guess this isn't necessarily true, is it?”
“How can I know if I'm a real Christian? I'd like to think I am, and I try to behave like one, but how can I know what God thinks of me? Sometimes I get very frightened when I think about meeting God some day.”
“How did the men who wrote the Bible know what happened thousands of years before they were born—things like the creation of the world, for example? I’d like to believe the Bible, but I guess I have too many unanswered questions.”