Hi all, my name is Eric. New to the forum. Been reading and rereading Ray's papers for quite some time now. He is an excellent teacher. I grew up Lutheran and was baptized as an infant, then as I grew into my teen years joined a youth group at a baptist church. I was persuaded by them to be baptized again. In all honesty, the only reason I joined the youth group was to do "fun stuff." Don't get me wrong, I did believe in God and Christ but for the most part I was scared to death of dying and going to hell. Eventually, I left the church and pursued my own interests. Every once in awhile I'd be invited to church and guilt would get the better of me so I'd go. It never failed, once there, I'd be asked to go back. I always had to weasel my way out of returning. I realized i wanted no part of a God that was capable of inventing and/or operating a place where our loved would be burned forever. It made no sense to me so I decided that the Bible was a book full of fairy tales; I became an atheist. I'd read the Bible quite often to prove that it was nonsense. Interestingly enough, as an atheist, I preached that the Bible was nonsense and that "Love" and "Forgiveness" were the keys to peace. Anyway, this went on for years. Then during a mythology course, I was assigned the task of giving a presentation on "The myth of hell." During my research I came across a paper written by Ray on the parable of the rich man and Lazarus. After reading the paper about ten times it finally hit me, and hard, that there was truth in what Ray was teaching. He has taught me much and I truly appreciate it. I am no longer an atheist and believe wholeheartedly that Jesus Christ Will save all. God bless you and your family Ray. God bless your family here in Christ and God Bless the whole World! My prayers are with you all.
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