“I've just been diagnosed with breast cancer, and it's really sent me into despair. Why is God punishing me? I believe in Jesus and I've always tried to be a good Christian, but what did I do to deserve this?”
“Is earth the only planet in our solar system that has life, do you think, or is there life on other planets? I like to watch science fiction programs on TV that talk about life on other planets, but I wonder if the Bible says anything about this.”
“Why do I make so many wrong decisions? I've been married (and divorced) four times, and every time I thought I had finally found the right man, only to discover he was abusive (husbands number one and three) or unfaithful (numbers two and four). What's wrong with me?”
“I'm not proud of the life I lived, and I wish I knew that God loved me. But every time things are going well and I think maybe God loves me, something reminds me of my past and then I know God doesn't love me after all. Will I ever get out of this pit?”
“How do you explain the fact that the Bible says in one place that God can't look at evil, while in another place it says that God sees everything? I'm not trying to ask a trick question, but I've honestly never understood this. Is it a contradiction?”
“I know preachers like you earn their living by condemning sin all the time, but I think it's ridiculous to say there is such a thing as right and wrong. Right and wrong are a matter of personal opinion—it's whatever you think they are. We shouldn't be slaves to some outdated moral code.”
“Our church is getting ready to elect officers in a few months. What kind of people should we look for? I'm on the nominating committee, but we're a new congregation and we don't have much experience with these things.”
“When someone dies, do they go to heaven immediately, or do they have to wait until the end of time before they can go into God's presence? My wife died a few months ago, and I worry about this.”
“My parents warned me not to marry my fiance, but I went ahead anyway, and as a result we broke off all contact. But now I realize why they were against the marriage, because he turned out to be very abusive, unfaithful, lazy—you name it. Now he's divorced me. I need my parents but I can't bring myself to face them. What should I do?”
“I injured my back in a car accident a few years ago, and now I'm afraid I'm addicted to painkillers. I get prescriptions from several different doctors who don't know I'm seeing anyone else. I can't live without those pills but I'm scared of what might happen to me if I don't quit taking them. Will God help me somehow?”
“I'm a widower in my late 60s, and recently I met a widow who is also in her 60s. Neither of us wants to remarry, but what would be wrong with her moving in with me? It's not like she's going to get pregnant or anything. We're lonely just living by ourselves.”
“We've been attending a church recently that always uses an ancient statement of belief (the Apostles' Creed) in its services. One line in it says something about Jesus descending into Hell after His death, and this confuses me. Why didn't He go to heaven after His death?”